Seattle’s “spring” continues with coldest May 12 in 23 years

Temperatures peaked at 51 degrees Thursday at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, breaking the record for the coldest May 12 in Seattle, according to the National Weather Service.

The city’s previous record was set in 1999 when May 12 logged a 53-degree day.

It’s official. Yesterday’s high temp in #Seattle was the normal high temperature for February 16th….

and here are morning temps today. 🤦‍♂️#wawx #pnw #spring #winter pic.twitter.com/CIQblTYwJW

— Jake Whittenberg 🎥📺🇺🇸 (@jwhittenbergK5) May 13, 2022

“It looks like it will remain cool and wet for the rest of the month. June and July are also forecasted to be cool but with near normal precipitation,” said Scott Pattee, the Water Supply Specialist for the Washington Snow Survey Office. “Short term helps keep the snowpack in place a little longer. However, it could be a detriment in the long term for crop production of sensitive crops such as fruits and berries.”

The record setting weather day followed a month of frigid temperatures. During April, Seattle weathered the two coldest back-to-back days in recorded history for the month of April, the National Weather Service (NWS) announced Thursday. NWS says in their 77 years of weather recordkeeping, April never fell below a high of 45 degrees before that two-day stretch. Those days both recorded a high of 44.

“Last year’s hot spell was a complete and total anomaly, which set many new records of which I hope we won’t see again for quite some time,” Pattee said.

The hot spell Pattee was referring to was the historic heat wave that shattered weather records across Western Washington, with most major areas experiencing their hottest ever days during that period. That list included:

• Seattle (Sea-Tac) 108 degrees, previously 104 on June 27, 2021
• Bellingham 99 degrees, previously 96 on July 29, 2009
• NWS Seattle 107 degrees, previously 105 on July 29, 2009
• Olympia 110 degrees, previously 105 on June 27, 2021
• Quillayute 110, previously 99 on Aug. 9, 1981