Weather

Actions

A Look at the Weather Numbers from 2018

Posted at 8:37 AM, Jan 02, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-02 09:37:57-05

A look back at the year that was when it comes to weather, without many major weather events for the most part (tornado outbreaks, hurricanes, major floods, etc.) we still set quite a few record across Acadiana.

Officially the National Weather Service (the keeper of the records) has stations in New Iberia and Lafayette, so those will be the two places mentioned in this article.

In 2018 Lafayette set 33 new records (5 highs/ 4 low highs/ 2 lows/ 19 high lows/ 3 daily precipitation), while New Iberia set a staggering 49 new records (25 highs/ 10 low highs/ 4 lows/ 7 high lows/ 3 daily precipitation).

Records in New Iberia are fairly recent having been kept since 1948, while Lafayette’s observations go all the way back to 1893.

The records though only tell part of the story, this tied New Iberia’s sixth warmest year on average (70 degrees), the record warmest is a tie between 1927 and 2012 (71.4 degrees).

Meanwhile Lafayette tied it’s 10th warmest year on record (70.2 degrees) with the warmest year on record the year previous in 2017 (71.5 degrees).

As Lafayette is a year removed from the warmest year on record I pulled up a list of the top ten warmest years, five of the top ten have come in the last six years.

This includes a consecutive stretch going back to 2015 which has seen a top ten year each year (missing is 2013 and 2014  or it would go back to 2012).

Even the top two warmest were consecutive years, being 2016 and 2017, and 2015 is tied for 5th warmest year on record.

New Iberia’s concentration is a little higher (although their records are significantly younger than Lafayette’s and missing what looks like a warm period in the 1920s), with seven of the top ten coming in the last ten years, and nine of the top ten in the last twenty years.

This again includes a stretch going back to 2015 of consecutive years being in the top ten warmest on record in New Iberia.

Since records have been kept the last time Lafayette posted a top ten coolest year was 1983, for New Iberia it’s been a little later with 2002 tied for the ninth coolest year on record.

Surprisingly this hasn’t necessarily corresponded with wetter records either over the last 20 years Lafayette has only seen 3 of the top ten (not surprisingly 2016, 2004, 2001) while New Iberia has posted top 10 numbers twice (2016 and 2001).