FLACO: August 2011

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Record! 70 days of 100+ and counting

This officially became the hottest summer in Central Texas history on Wednesday when the temperature reached 100 degrees or more for the 70th day of 2011.

The region reached the triple-digit mark between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., and that pushed aside the old record that was set in the summer of 1925 and then tied on Tuesday.

And don't expect this record to stand. Not only does the KXAN forecast show the high reaching 104 degrees later Wednesday afternoon, the region will likely see 100-plus degrees well into next week -- and possibly into next month.

As a result of this heat, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas issued a Level One emergency Tuesday, asking everyone to try and conserve electricity between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Ways to conserve include closing the blinds, using a microwave instead of ovens or ranges and avoiding opening refrigerators and freezers.

This record heat can be blamed on the La Nina weather pattern out in the Pacific. That leads to dry weather and hot temperatures.

On average, Central Texas experiences about a dozen days in the summer that reach 100 degrees or more. The closest the area has come to beating the record was in 2009, with 68 days of 100-plus degree weather.