March Finished as One of the Driest on Record

March finished abnormally dry for most of Central Florida while temperatures were warmer than average.

Rain was tough to come by during March. We saw abnormally dry conditions expand across the region due to the lack of meaningful rainfall.

Not even one city in Central Florida came close to picking up near-average rain for the month.

Orlando picked up the most rain with more than two inches, but still finished more than an inch-and-a-half below normal.

Sanford had its sixth-driest March on record, while it was in the top 20 driest on record for Daytona Beach, Leesburg, and Melbourne.

Melbourne and Daytona Beach both fell shy of picking up an inch of rain.

A strong ridge of high pressure kept out the cold fronts that would have brought us rain. It allowed temperatures to heat up, too. 

Temperatures got close to record highs as we got the first 90-degree days of the year.

Orlando had three 90-degree days, while Sanford felt temperatures in the 90s five times during the month.

The only location not to hit 90 degrees in March was Leesburg.

Temperatures averaged more than three degrees warmer than normal for most of Central Florida during the month.