Heat — North Coast, Washington

2023-05-13 to 2023-05-14 · North Coast, Washington

Event narrative

The North Coast of WA experienced well above normal temperatures in mid-May, breaking several high temperature records:

May 13: Record high set at HQM of 89 degrees, breaking the previous record of 88 set in 1973

May 14: Record high set at HQM of 91 degrees, breaking the previous record of 84 set in 2014

Hoquiam also set the all time highest May temperature, beating 87 degrees set back in 2007.

Wider weather episode

A strong ridge of high pressure brought well above normal temperatures to Western Washington, with a period of high temperatures in the upper 80s to low 90s. Many locations broke temperature records during this period. Eventually, onshore flow aided in the recovery back towards near normal temperatures to round out the latter half of the month.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1103538. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.