May was one of wettest and hottest on record

WASHINGTON — No, it wasn’t just you: May was very hot and very rainy.

In fact, it was the sixth wettest and third hottest May on record. Storm Team 4 Meteorologist Chuck Bell said May is the first time the D.C. area has had a combination of the top-10 wettest and top-10 warmest months.

Bell said only three days were cooler than average and all of those days came with heavy rain, because of course they did.

So how much rain did the D.C. area get?

The National Weather Service recorded 8.73 inches of rain at Reagan National Airport, 8.92 inches of rain at Dulles International Airport and 8.17 at BWI Marshall Airport.

That’s more than double the rainfall totals you’d normally see at Reagan National and BWI Marshall in May.

What makes those totals even more impressive is that through May 11, the weather service had only recorded 0.26 inches of rain at all three airports combined.

Reagan National didn’t record any rain until May 12.

In case you were wondering, the start of June is going to be a lot like May: Rain is in the forecast for the weekend.

But if you’re feeling bad, remember it could always be worse. Asheville and Wilmington, North Carolina recorded more than 14 inches of rain in May.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up