WE'VE MOVED! Democratic Convention Watch is now at http://www.DemocraticConventionWatch.com
But it's a dry heat!
Meteorologists are warning Colorado residents to keep out of the sun or wear a hat today because the highs could reach near 100 degrees in many parts of the state.
And the state health department issued an ozone alert until 4 this afternoon, warning that mostly clear skies and warm temperatures will allow enough ozone to form in the lower layers of the atmosphere that it can be unhealthy for sensitive people.
The official forecast high in Denver today is 95, say National Weather Service forecasters, but there's a good bet certain areas in metro Denver and the eastern plains will get a few degrees higher than that. - RMN
So for those of you coming to Denver in just over a month for the convention who are wondering what to pack, here's some info that may be helpful.
- Between 1872 and 2008 Denver has had 65 days at 100 degrees or more. The highest temperature is 105 degrees which we've hit in 1878 and 2005.
- June has seen 8 days at 100 or over.
- July has been at 100 or over 45 times.
- August has hit 100 only 8 times over this 136 year period.
- August 16th is the latest date to hit 100. That was in 2002.
So what could happen during the convention? Here's a look at each day:
August 25th
19-30 IN 1875...GRASSHOPPERS APPEARED IN GREAT NUMBERS AT 10:00 AM
ON THE 19TH. THOUSANDS LANDED ON THE GROUND. THE STREETS
WERE LITERALLY COVERED WITH THEM. SWARMS OF GRASSHOPPERS
WERE SEEN ON EACH DAY. ALL GARDENS IN THE CITY WERE
DEVASTATED...AND IN THE COUNTRYSIDE THE GRASSHOPPERS WERE
VERY DESTRUCTIVE TO RIPENED GRAIN. ON THE 30TH THE
GRASSHOPPERS WERE SO NUMEROUS AS TO ALMOST DARKEN THE SUN.
24-26 IN 1910...THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE EVER RECORDED IN AUGUST...40
DEGREES...OCCURRED ON EACH OF THESE DAYS AND ON AUGUST 22...
1904. THE UNUSUALLY COLD WEATHER FOR SO EARLY IN THE
SEASON BROUGHT SUB-FREEZING MINIMUM TEMPERATURES TO MUCH
OF THE COLORADO NORTHEASTERN PLAINS.
25 IN 1951...A MICROBURST PRODUCED A SOUTHWEST WIND GUST TO 50
MPH AT STAPLETON AIRPORT. ONLY A TRACE OF RAIN WAS
OBSERVED.
IN 1964...THUNDERSTORM WINDS GUSTED TO 59 MPH AND CAUSED
SOME BLOWING DUST AT STAPLETON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.
IN 1994...LIGHTNING STRUCK A POWER POLE IN LOUISVILLE AND
CAUSED A TWO-HOUR POWER OUTAGE.
August 26th
26 IN 1944...ONE OF THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE HAILSTORMS IN THE CITY
IN A DECADE CAUSED DAMAGE ESTIMATED AT NEARLY ONE MILLION
DOLLARS. THE STORM OCCURRED WITHIN A PERIOD OF 10 TO 30
MINUTES...BETWEEN 2:00 PM AND 3:00 PM. THE HAIL VARIED IN
SIZE FROM VERY SMALL TO AS LARGE AS 1 1/2 INCHES IN
DIAMETER. HAIL COVERED THE GROUND TO A DEPTH OF 5 TO 6
INCHES IN SOME SECTIONS OF THE CITY.
IN 1961...STRONG WINDS BLEW IN THE WALLS OF A WAREHOUSE UNDER
CONSTRUCTION IN DENVER. TWO WORKMEN SUFFERED A FRACTURED
FOOT AND BODY BRUISES.
26-27 IN 1980...TWO HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS HIT ARVADA AND WESTMINSTER...
DUMPING UP TO 1.50 INCHES OF RAIN IN LESS THAN AN HOUR.
AT LEAST TWO STREETS WERE WASHED OUT AND A NUMBER OF HOMES
AND CARS WERE DAMAGED WHEN A CREEK FLOODED. THREE HOMES
IN ARVADA SUSTAINED MINOR LIGHTNING DAMAGE.
August 27th
27 IN 1910...A THUNDERSTORM PRODUCED SOUTH WINDS SUSTAINED TO 40
MPH.
IN 1961...STRONG THUNDERSTORM WINDS AND HEAVY RAIN OCCURRED AT
79TH AND FEDERAL BLVD. IN WESTMINSTER. THE STRONG WINDS
BLEW THE ROOFS OFF LUMBER SHEDS ONTO PARKED CARS.
IN 1967...A YOUNG WOMAN WAS KILLED BY LIGHTNING WHILE
HORSEBACK RIDING IN THE SUBURBS JUST WEST OF DENVER. HER
HORSE DIED SEVERAL HOURS AFTER THE INCIDENT. A YOUNG MAN
AND ANOTHER YOUNG WOMAN WERE ALSO KNOCKED FROM THEIR HORSES
BY THE IMPACT OF THE LIGHTNING AND REQUIRED HOSPITALIZATION.
IN 1991...HEAVY THUNDERSTORM RAINFALL TOTALED 0.91 INCH AT
STAPLETON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT...WHERE 1/4 INCH DIAMETER
HAIL WAS MEASURED.
IN 1996...LOCALIZED STREET FLOODING OCCURRED IN THE FORT
LUPTON AREA WHEN 2 TO 3 INCHES OF RAIN FELL IN 45 MINUTES.
THE ROOF OF A COMMUNITY COLLEGE BEGAN LEAKING...WHICH CAUSED
DAMAGE TO CEILING TILES. THE ROOF WAS UNDER REPAIR FROM
HAIL DAMAGE WHICH HAD OCCURRED EARLIER IN THE SUMMER. A
WEAK TORNADO (F0) WAS SIGHTED NEAR FORT LUPTON. NO DAMAGE
WAS REPORTED.
IN 1999...A SLOW MOVING THUNDERSTORM DUMPED 5 INCHES OF RAIN
IN 2 HOURS NEAR DACONO. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM PRODUCED
3/4 INCH DIAMETER HAIL IN CASTLE ROCK.
IN 2002...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS SPREAD LARGE HAIL OVER METRO
DENVER. HAIL AS LARGE AS 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER FELL IN
JEFFERSON COUNTY 5 TO 11 MILES NORTHWEST OF GOLDEN. OTHER
LARGE HAIL REPORTS INCLUDED: 1 1/2 INCHES NEAR GOLDEN AND
IN LAKEWOOD; 1 1/4 INCHES IN NEDERLAND; 1 INCH HAIL NEAR
ELIZABETH...LOUVIERS...ROLLINSVILLE...AND BLACKHAWK; 7/8 INCH
HAIL NEAR ACEQUIA IN DOUGLAS COUNTY. A THUNDERSTORM
PRODUCED A TRACE OF RAIN AND A MICROBURST WIND GUST TO
52 MPH AT DENVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.
IN 2003...LIGHTNING STRUCK A HOUSE AND SPARKED A FIRE IN
ARVADA. DAMAGE TO THE ROOF AND CEILING WAS EXTENSIVE.
IN 2005...LIGHTNING STRUCK AN UNOCCUPIED HOME IN PARKER.
THE RESULTING FIRE DAMAGED THE ROOF...ATTIC...AND SECOND
FLOOR BEDROOM. DAMAGE WAS ESTIMATED AT 15 THOUSAND
DOLLARS.
27-28 IN 2004...A BRIEF CHILLY SPELL RESULTED IN THREE TEMPERATURE
RECORDS. THE HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 55 DEGREES ON THE 27TH
WAS A RECORD LOW MAXIMUM FOR THE DATE. THE LOW TEMPERATURE
OF 48 DEGREES ON THE 27TH EQUALED THE RECORD MINIMUM FOR
THE DATE. THE LOW TEMPERATURE OF 42 DEGREES ON THE 28TH
WAS A RECORD MINIMUM FOR THE DATE.
August 28th (Invesco Field Day)So short of the rare swarm of grasshoppers and stray lightning bolt you have nothing to worry about!
28 IN 1887...A DRY THUNDERSTORM PRODUCED NORTH WINDS TO 48 MPH
BUT ONLY A TRACE OF RAINFALL.
IN 1968...ONE MAN WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED BY LIGHTNING WHILE
RIDING ON A ROLLER COASTER AT A DENVER AMUSEMENT PARK. AN
AIRLINE EMPLOYEE WAS INJURED WHEN LIGHTNING STRUCK A
JETLINER HE WAS SERVICING AT STAPLETON INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT. A LIGHTNING-CAUSED FIRE DID EXTENSIVE DAMAGE TO
ONE HOUSE AND MINOR DAMAGE TO SEVERAL OTHERS IN THE CITY OF
DENVER.
IN 1970...A MICROBURST WIND GUST TO 53 MPH WAS RECORDED AT
STAPLETON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.
IN 2002...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM PRODUCED 3/4 INCH DIAMETER
HAIL NEAR PARKER.
IN 2005...LIGHTNING SPARKED A SMALL FIRE NEAR JAMESTOWN. THE
BLAZE WAS QUICKLY CONTAINED AND CONSUMED LESS THAN AN ACRE.
Seriously... Denver has some of the best weather I've ever seen. We'll probably see 80 degree weather during the week. And one thing to keep in mind is that the mountains suck up a lot of our rain. You can see storms coming from the West that look like you should start building an ark and they die out before they hit the city. Average rainfall for August is only 1.87 inches. The average high is 86 and the average low is 52.
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