ZCZC ARBCLMFNT
CXUS53 KFNT 012233

CLIMATOLOGICAL SUMMARY FOR FLINT - APRIL 2003
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DETROIT/PONTIAC MI
600 PM EDT THU MAY 1 2003

...NEAR NORMAL TEMPERATURE MONTH WAS ANYTHING BUT...
...WORST ICE STORM IN YEARS HITS AFTER NOTABLE WARM SPELL...
...MOTHER NATURE "FOOLS" US LATER WITH NICE WEATHER ON APRIL 1ST...
...12TH SNOWIEST APRIL ON RECORD...

THE LONG...COLD WINTER OF 2002-03 WAS NOT GOING TO GIVE UP EASILY AS 
YET ANOTHER ARCTIC BLAST BLEW INTO THE REGION DURING THE FIRST WEEK OF 
APRIL. MOTHER NATURE REALLY PULLED AN APRIL FOOLS JOKE ON THE 
INHABITANTS OF SOUTHEAST LOWER MICHIGAN. AFTER A BEAUTIFUL APRIL 1ST 
WITH HIGH TEMPERATURES WELL INTO THE 60S (65 AT FLINT)...THE WEATHER 
TOOK A TURN FOR THE WORSE ON THE 3RD WHEN THE APRIL FOOLS WAS PLAYED.

A STRONG ARCTIC FRONT PUSHED ITS WAY SOUTH ACROSS SOUTHEAST LOWER 
MICHIGAN DURING THE AFTERNOON ON THE 3RD. THE TEMPERATURE EXTREMES 
ACROSS JUST SOUTHEAST LOWER MICHIGAN WERE QUITE DRAMATIC AND IMPRESSIVE 
WITH A WINTER-LIKE AIRMASS CONTRASTING WITH A SUMMER-LIKE ONE. WHILE 
LOWER TO MID 30S WERE COMMONPLACE ACROSS THE SAGINAW VALLEY AND THUMB 
REGION, TEMPERATURES AT THE SAME TIME WERE INTO THE 70S (WITH ONE OR 
TWO PLACES EVEN FLIRTING WITH 80) IN LENAWEE AND MONROE COUNTIES. 
A STORM CENTER MOVED NORTHEAST ALONG IT AND PRODUCED THUNDERSTORMS...
VERY HEAVY RAIN...A DANGEROUS COATING OF FREEZING RAIN WHICH LED TO 
SIGNIFICANT ICING EVENT ON THE 3RD/4TH OVER MOST OF SOUTHEAST LOWER 
MICHIGAN. THERE WERE ACTUALLY TWO EVENTS...OVERNIGHT ON THE 3RD INTO 
THE 4TH AND THEN AGAIN...LATER ON THE 4TH. GENERAL REPORTS OF ICE FROM 
A 1/4 TO 1/2 INCH WERE RELAYED TO THE WEATHER SERVICE WITH ISOLATED 
REPORTS OF ICE THICKNESS OF UP TO AN INCH. LATER ON THE 5TH...SLEET 
AND SNOW FOLLOWED THE ICE AS COLDER AIR FILTER IN. SOME AREAS AROUND 
FLINT NORTH INTO THE SAGINAW VALLEY AND THUMB REGION REPORTED UP TO 
AN INCH OR TWO OF SLEET/SNOW ON TOP OF THE ICE. THE CUSTOMERS WHO 
LOST POWER TOTALED CLOSE TO A HALF-MILLION ACROSS SOUTHEAST LOWER 
MICHIGAN. DTE ENERGY STATED IT WAS THE WORST ICE STORM IN 27 YEARS 
/1976/ AS FAR AS CUSTOMERS WITH POWER OUTAGE. OVER 100,000 CUSTOMERS 
WERE STILL WITHOUT POWER FIVE DAYS LATER. 

MOTHER NATURE GAVE US THE ONE-TWO PUNCH DURING THAT FIRST WEEK OF 
APRIL AS YET ANOTHER STORM MOVED UP THE OHIO VALLEY ON THE 7TH AND 
LEFT A COUPLE OF INCHES OF SNOW ACROSS THE REGION. FLINTS SNOWFALL
FOR APRIL OF JUST 3.6 INCHES STILL MADE IT THE 12TH SNOWIEST APRIL 
ON RECORD (AFTER A WINTER THAT WAS THE 17TH SNOWIEST...MUCH MORE 
ABOUT THE WINTER 2002-03 IN THE WINTER WRITE-UP DUE OUT SHORTLY). 
A HIGH TEMPERATURE OF ONLY 32 ON THE 5TH AND 33 ON THE 8TH WERE THE 
COLDEST APRIL 5TH/8TH EVER RECORDED AT FLINT SINCE 1942.

WARMER WEATHER RETURNED MID MONTH (ALONG WITH OUR FIRST 80 DEGREE 
DAY) WHEN THE TEMPERATURE SURGED TO 85 DEGREES ON THE 15TH. THIS 85 
SUPERSEDED THE OLD RECORD OF 84 SET IRONICALLY...JUST LAST YEAR. IN 
ADDITION...A HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 79 DEGREES ON THE 14TH BROKE THE 
OLD RECORD OF 76 SET BACK IN 1954. JUST A WEEK EARLIER...THE RECORD
LOW MAXIMUMS IN THE THE LOWER 30S WERE SET.

THE WARMER WEATHER RETURNED MID MONTH IN TIME FOR EASTER BUT ALONG 
WITH THE WARMER WEATHER CAME THE STORMS. AN APPROACHING STRONG COLD 
FRONT CHURNED UP SCATTERED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EASTER AFTERNOON. 
MANY REPORTS OF HAIL AND HIGH WINDS WERE RECEIVED WITH THE PASSAGE 
OF THESE STORMS. ANOTHER POLAR AIR MASS MADE IT FAR ENOUGH SOUTH 
INTO THE GREAT LAKES TO BRING MORE SNOW SHOWERS TO SOUTHEAST LOWER 
MICHIGAN ON THE 22ND (AND HOPEFULLY THE LAST OF THE SEASON).  

THE MONTH WENT OUT ON THE STORMY SIDE WITH SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS 
INTO THE NIGHT OF THE 30TH. THE STORMS CONTAINED VERY HEAVY RAINS OF
ONE TO TWO INCHES AT SEVERAL LOCATIONS.

WHILE THE MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS JUST ABOVE THE NORMAL AT
FLINT...AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 42.6 WAS NOTABLY BELOW NORMAL /-2.9/.

................................................................
  
...TEMPERATURES...                  ...PRECIPITATION...
AVERAGE MAXIMUM........... 57.1     MONTHLY TOTAL ............ 2.94                                
AVERAGE MINIMUM .......... 34.6     DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL.....-0.19          
AVERAGE MONTHLY........... 45.8     GREATEST IN 24HRS/DATES... 1.57     
DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL..... +0.4                      ON THE 3RD-4TH
HIGHEST..........85 ON THE 15TH     2003 TOTAL................ 5.51     
LOWEST...........18 ON THE  6TH     DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL.....-2.76                                                        
         
 
...HEATING DEGREE DAYS...           ...NUMBER OF DAYS WITH... 
MONTHLY TOTAL.............. 575     0.01 OR MORE PRECIPITATION.. 12          
MONTHLY DEPARTURE..........  -2     0.10 OR MORE PRECIPITATION..  5    
2002-2003 SEASON TOTAL.....6796     0.50 OR MORE PRECIPITATION..  1    
DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL......+126     1.00 OR MORE PRECIPITATION..  1    
 
...COOLING DEGREE DAYS...           ...SNOWFALL...
MONTHLY TOTAL.......... 9           MONTHLY TOTAL...............  3.6        
MONTHLY DEPARTURE...... 4           MONTHLY DEPARTURE........... +1.0        
2003 SEASON............ 9           2002-2003 SEASON TOTAL...... 52.1     
DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL.. 4           DEPARTURE FROM AVERAGE...... +3.8     
                                    (NEW 1971-2000 AVERAGE)..... 48.3
PEAK GUST -  WEST 52 MPH/20TH
                                                          
______________________________________________________________________

APRIL 2003 CLIMATOLOGICAL SUMMARY FOR: 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE...WHITE LAKE MI.

...TEMPERATURE DATA...             ...PRECIPITATION DATA...
AVERAGE MAXIMUM.... 56.2           MONTHLY TOTAL .......... 4.63                
AVERAGE MINIMUM.... 33.4           GREATEST IN 24HRS....... 2.44              
MONTHLY AVERAGE.... 44.8                              ON THE 4TH                                                                                
                                   2003 TOTAL.............. 8.99     

...HEATING DEGREE DAYS...          ...SNOWFALL DATA...
MONTHLY TOTAL............ 606      MONTHLY TOTAL............  5.1               
2002-2003 SEASON TOTAL...7012      2002-2003 SEASON TOTAL... 66.0         

...COOLING DEGREE DAYS...
MONTHLY TOTAL...........  0  
2003 SEASON.............  0   

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