October could be the “driest calendar month ever” in Philly – NBC10 Philadelphia

The answer to the following question makes you hope for cold November rain.

When was the last time Philadelphia went an entire month without rain?

Never on record, says the National Weather Service office in Mt. Holly, New Jersey.

“8 of our 9 climate stations are on track to experience their driest calendar month on record,” the weather service said in an X post. “Philadelphia, Trenton, Wilmington and Georgetown received no measurable precipitation this month, not even a trace in Philadelphia.”

8 of our 9 climate stations are on track to experience their driest calendar month on record. Philadelphia, Trenton, Wilmington and Georgetown received no measurable precipitation this month, with not even a trace in Philadelphia. A look at the driest months on record. 🧵 (1/2) pic.twitter.com/FbOMcmjLab

– NWS Mount Holly (@NWS_MountHolly) October 22, 2024

Interestingly, the October months are among the ten driest months in Philadelphia, dating back to the 1880s.

That's right. If this drought, which has caused leaves to brown prematurely and lawns to become hard and brown, continues, we will be in unprecedented territory.

Our warm, dry weather results in a very rapid transition from summer to winter in terms of vegetation. These two photos were taken just 4 days apart. Quite a change in such a short time! Go out and enjoy the colors while they are here, they will disappear in a flash. pic.twitter.com/0cJ46wQTNU

– NWS Mount Holly (@NWS_MountHolly) October 22, 2024

Record days without rain

By the end of Wednesday, the low precipitation period will reach 25 days.

Unfortunately, the chances of rain falling in the region next week are slim as drought conditions worsen. The record for rainless days is 29, set in 1874, NWS said.

In the 10-day forecast, the only chance of rain is early Saturday with a 20% chance of isolated showers. With a mostly dry front prevailing, these possible showers won't help much at all.

If we see measurable rain at Philadelphia International Airport, we will not break the record.

The region is so dry that parts of Pine Run Reservoir in Doylestown, Buck County, have completely dried up.

Brian Mayfield

The decline in water at the Manasquan Reservoir in Farmingdale, New Jersey is becoming increasingly visible.

The place where it hasn't rained the longest in our region is Allentown. The record was set in 1924 with 42 days without rain.

Atlantic City, New Jersey set its record back in 1995 with 39 days without rain.

Fire weather watch

Our entire region is under a fire weather watch. There hasn't been much wind lately, but it's starting to pick up as several weak fronts move through.

There are currently two active wildfires in the state of New Jersey: one in Wharton State Forest and the other on Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst.

A Red Flag Warning has been issued for southern New Jersey, effective at 11 a.m. Thursday morning.

Thursday October 24th is expected to become even drier and windier, making the situation even more serious.

It is possible that existing wildfires could continue to spread and smaller fires that may now be undetected could increase.

The drought monitor is updated every Thursday.