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Summer 2024 was the second hottest since 1995 despite cool August

Summer 2024 was the second hottest since 1995 despite cool August

Do you remember a cooler end to summer and September?

Well, this year was still the second-hottest summer since 1995, according to a Banner analysis of temperatures at Baltimore-Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport. The only hotter summer was 2010.

This year, the Greater Baltimore area recorded the second-warmest July as the average temperature reached 82.2 and the heat index went over 100 several times.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted above-normal temperatures earl, a trend that’s likely to continue as human-caused climate change pushes temperatures higher. One climate scientist has said Maryland’s future climate is likely to resemble the Deep South’s one day.

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But even a mild August — dubbed the false autumn — wasn’t enough to tame a hot June and July.

July 2024 was the 2nd-warmest month on record

Monthly average temperature in Baltimore since 1995.

The Baltimore City Health Department raised the Code Red Extreme Heat Alert six times as the heat index, which combines air temperature and relative humidity, reached dangerous levels.

The first Code Red Extreme Heat Alert was issued when the summer started in June, followed by six days with an alert in July and two in August.

Code Red Extreme Heat Alert raised as record heat surges past 100°F

Daily record heat in Baltimore from June to September 2024.

Six heat-related deaths in Baltimore were recorded by the Maryland Department of Health Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

This includes the death of a sanitation worker, which prompted some Baltimore City Council members and union representatives to demand more stringent safety measures.

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Summers are not the only season getting warmer. Climate change is impacting every season. The area saw a warmer winter, with an average high of 51.9 degrees. Spring was also the hottest in the last decade.

Winter, spring and fall have gotten warmer in the last 10 years

Seasonal average temperature in Baltimore since 2014.

chart visualization

Although the trend suggests warmer fall weather than usual, average temperatures are expected to drop in October.