The ground is still saturated in much of the state after a very wet February.


What You Need To Know

  • A couple of coastal locations measured a foot or more of rain last month

  • Rainfall was closer to average in the mountains of western North Carolina

  • The wet month made for the first February since 2015 with a statewide average temperature that was below normal

That is especially the case in the eastern half of North Carolina, which ended the month well above average for rainfall. Totals were closer to normal in western parts of the state.

According to the State Climate Office, the wettest locations were near the coast. Williamston measured 10.35" for the month, making it the wettest February there since 1931.

Volunteer weather spotters reported even higher totals in some coastal locations.

Raleigh, Kinston, and Washington all recorded their second-wettest February.

The driest spot in the state was Mount Jefferson, where only 2.78" of rain fell.

In their monthly climate blog, the State Climate Office found February was the 17th-wettest on record for North Carolina when averaging the rain that fell across the entire state. That's based on records that date back to 1895.

Chilly and wet for the month

The wet weather often made for chilly days. The statewide average temperature was 1.2 degrees below normal for February. 

The coldest spot in the state during the month was Mount Mitchell. The weather reporting site on top of the highest peak in the eastern United States recorded a temperature of just 3 degrees on February 2 and 3.

Laurinburg enjoyed the warmest weather in February when the temperature soared to 85 degrees on the final day of the month.

As the State Climate Office pointed out, last month felt especially chilly because recent Februaries have been quite warm. This was the first February with a below-normal statewide temperature since 2015. The warmest February on record in the state occurred in 2018.  The second-warmest was in 2017.

Last month was just the 48th-coldest.