Seattle gets most rainy September days in over four decades
Oct 1, 2019, 6:44 AM | Updated: 11:45 am
(Photo by Robert Sumner/Getty Images)
It’s been a cold, rainy start to the fall in Western Washington, marked by a September that saw the Seattle area get double what it normally sees in rainfall.
Wet-tember continues on in Seattle area
According to data cited by the Seattle Weather Blog, Seattle saw 3.32 inches of rain this September, over twice the average for the month of 1.5 inches.
Seattle saw 16 total days of measurable rainfall in September this year, the third most the city has ever had, and the most in over four decades. Bellingham saw its wettest September ever, with a new record of 4.73 inches of rainfall, breaking the previous 4.71-inch mark set in 1969.
While September rainfall in Seattle was far short of a record, measurable rainfall was observed on 16 days. Only the Septembers of 1978 and 1969 had more days with measurable rainfall. So, in short, no, it wasn't your imagination. It was rather grey. ☁️☁️#wawx
— NWS Seattle (@NWSSeattle) October 1, 2019
Not to be outdone on gloomy weather, temperatures in Olympia got as low as 29 degrees overnight between Sunday and Monday. That marked not only the appearance of the first frost of the season, but also the coldest low temperature in September the city has seen in 19 years.
On average, Olympia’s first freeze typically rolls in on Oct. 9, meaning this year’s rolled in over a week early. Additionally, that was only the sixth time in almost 80 years that Olympia had a low under 30 degrees in the month of September.
Early Tuesday morning saw similarly frosty weather, with temperatures getting down to 32 degrees in both Olympia and Bremerton.
In Seattle, Monday and Tuesday overnight temperatures hovered in the low 40s. And while it avoided freezing weather, lows around 40 degrees were something the city didn’t see until late October in any of the last three years.