Chill out! July coolest on record This July will go into the record books as the coolest for this region [Fort Wayne] in recorded history.
Only four days during the month reached average or above-average temperatures.
The lower-than-normal temperatures were recorded across parts of northeast Indiana, southwest Michigan and northwest Ohio, according to the northern Indiana office of the National Weather Service.
Final temperature statistics for July will be tallied today, but Friday’s high temperature of 79 degrees was a continuation of the unusual summer season.
A pool of cool, low pressure that remained over the Fort Wayne area is the cause for the unseasonably cool month, according to Mark Steinwedel, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Through July 29, the average overall temperature has been 68.9 degrees, 4.5 degrees below normal.
The highest temperature this month was 87 degrees on July 10; the lowest temperature was 49 degrees on July 14. The average daily high in July should be 84 or 85 degrees for Fort Wayne.
“It’s the coolest as long as records have been taken in Fort Wayne,” Steinwedel said. “It was a surprise that it was so persistent. We had basically the same weather pattern the entire month.”
Lower-than-normal temperatures are expected to continue through the first half of August, Steinwedel said.
If that proves true, it could affect corn crops, said Gonzalee Martin, agricultural agent for the Allen County Purdue University Extension Office.
“At this point, I don’t really see a problem yet,” he said. “It all depends on what happens in the month of August. Some crops have a tendency to favor this kind of weather.”
Among the crops that could benefit are soybeans, Martin said.
Despite the cooler temperatures, the Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation Department reported that city pool attendance was up about 15 percent in July, according to Perry Ehresman, deputy director.
Northside Pool has seen the greatest increase in attendance. Normally 10,000 to 11,000 people visit the pool each month. Attendance was up by 1,500 in July, Ehresman said.
Whenever the high temperature is forecast to be less than 80 degrees, the pools offer special “Dollar Days” admission for $1 a person. So far this year, there were 20 dollar days – up from the typical six to eight seen in July, Ehresman said.
The Dollar Days have led to a decrease of about 15 percent in revenue from pool admissions this year.
Meanwhile, the Salvation Army’s Operation Cool Breeze gave out about half as many fans and air conditioners as it did last July, according to Timothy Smith, social-service director for the Salvation Army. This July, only 21 were given out, he said.
According to the National Weather Service’s preliminary figures, the average high in July was 79.2 degrees, and Fort Wayne had 4.22 inches of rain.
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