http://www.examiner.com/weather-in-wilmington/charlie-wilson
Charlie Wilson Wilmington Weather ExaminerSubscribeSponsor an Examiner A member of the American Meteorological Society, 
Charlie Wilson has combined his knowledge of Meteorology & Weather History with his Education background in Communications.
-----------------------------------------
August 11th:
1831
A violent hurricane devastated the island of Barbados. Death toll was estimated to be from 1,500 to 2,500.
 
1914
The high of 107° at Northwest River in Newfoundland, Canada established the record temperature for the province.
 
1933 
The shade temperature reached 136.4° at San Luis, Mexico, to unofficially share the world record with Aziziyah, Lybia.
 
1936
The warmest August temperature ever recorded in both Oklahoma City and Wichita Falls occurred on this date.
 The morning low in Oklahoma City was a warm 82°, before both cities warmed up to a very hot 113°.
 The old August record in Oklahoma City was 112, which was set the day before. In Wichita Falls, this record was tied on 8/6/1964.
  
1940
A major hurricane struck Savannah, GA and Charleston, SC causing the worst inland flooding since 1607.
 
1941
An intense short-duration storm occurred in the lower Muddy River Basin in southern Nevada resulting in the largest, estimated peak flow known on the California Wash and the lower Muddy River.
 The flood severely damaged the town of Overton and also damaged agricultural and railroad property. 
Peak discharges were estimated at 10,000 cubic feet per second in California Wash near mouth, and at 12,000 cubic feet per second in the Muddy River channel in the lower Moapa Valley.
 
1944
The temperature reached 101° at Burlington, VT to establish their all-time record high.
 
1968
A young girl in a lake was injured when a dust devil near Bristol, CT carried a 150 pound roof covering a picnic area into a lake.
 
1975
A line of heavy thunderstorms moved rapidly across portions of eastern South Dakota and into Iowa. Wind gusts associated with these storms reached 70 mph in many areas.
 In Canton, winds were estimated at 70 mph while the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls was belted with a 69 mph gust. 
The high winds leveled many trees and also destroyed some older buildings in Miner County while the Sioux Falls area had only tree damage and minor building damage.
 The storms maintained their strength as they moved into northwest Iowa. 
An uncompleted trucking terminal and several trucks received around $10,000 dollars in damage in Sac County while a grain storage bin was flattened and boat house destroyed near Storm Lake.
1979
The mercury was plummeting over portions of the Arrowhead of Minnesota. The temperature at Embarrass, MN fell to 28°, accompanied by a hard freeze.
 
1980
The Democratic National Convention at Madison Square Garden could not drown out a major thunderstorm affecting the New York City area.
 70 mph winds and major lightning knocked out power to over 30,000 people.
 
Clouds and moisture from Hurricane Allen provided a brief break from the torrid Texas heat wave, with daily highs mostly in the 70s and 80s.
 
1984
Miami, FL set a record high for the date with 96°. Then a thunderstorm cools things off to 70°, which set a record low for the date.
 
1985
Lightning set off 11 fires in the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation area. 
20 acres of grassland were burned two miles northeast of Bear Creek. About 600 acres of grassland were burned 8 miles southwest of Lantry.
 About 3,000 acres of grassland burned near Eagle Butte.
 
1986
Atlanta, GA saw its streak of 38 consecutive days with 90 degrees or hotter finally come to an end with a reading of 89°.
 
1987
An early evening thunderstorm in Wyoming produced hail up to 2 inches in diameter from Alva to Hulett.
 Snowplows had to be used to clear Highway 24 south of Hulett, where hail formed drifts two feet deep.
 
1988
Moisture from the remnants of Tropical Storm Beryl resulted in torrential rains across eastern Texas.
 12.50 inches of rain deluged Enterprise, TX, which was more than the amount received there during the previous eight months.
 
Philadelphia, PA reported a record 44 days of 90 degree weather for the year. Baltimore, MD and Newark, NJ reported a record 14 straight days of 90 degree heat.
 
1989
One of the most severe convective outbreaks on record came to a climax in southern California after four days.
 Thunderstorms deluged Benton, CA with 6 inches of rain two days in a row, and the flooding which resulted caused more than a million dollars damage to homes and highways.
 
Thunderstorms around Yellowstone Park, WY produced 4 inches of rain in 20 minutes resulting in 15 mudslides.
 
Rainfall up to 4.5 inches produced flooding in Scottsbluff, NE. The heavy rains collapsed the roof of a business and flooded some streets with up to three feet of water. 
Thunderstorms over Long Island, NY drenched Suffolk County with 8 to 10 inches of rain.
 
Many cities in the southeastern U.S. reported record low temperatures for the date. It was, for some cities, the fourth straight morning of record cold temperatures.
 Records included: Oak Ridge, TN: 52°, Asheville, NC: 53°, Fort Smith, AR: 58°, Greenville-Spartanburg, SC: 58°, Athens, GA: 60°, Shreveport, LA: 61°, Savannah, GA: 64°,
 Lake Charles, LA: 66°, Jacksonville, FL: 68°, and Tampa, FL: 70°.
 
1993
An unusual high elevation tornado in the Ashley National Forest of Utah produced a path 17 miles long and as much as a half mile wide.
 The storm attained F3 intensity, destroying 1,000 acres of trees. The highest elevation damage was observed at 10,800 feet.
 
1997
A cloudy, rainy day across southern Michigan resulted in a new lowest daily maximum temperature at Lansing, MI and tied a record at Grand Rapids, MI. 
The high temperature at Lansing was just 64°. At Grand Rapids, the high of 64° tied the previous low maximum set back in 1902.
 
1999
A rare Utah tornado struck the downtown area of Salt Lake City, UT during the lunch hour, leaving one person dead and over 100 injured.
 The fatality was the first tornado death in Utah in recorded history. 
The tornado, rated an F2, caused extensive damage to a convention tent adjacent to the Salt Palace, a Wyndham hotel and the Delta Center.
 Only four F2 tornadoes have been recorded in Utah history.
 
1999 was a memorable year for tornadoes since four major metropolitan areas were struck, including Oklahoma City, OK, Little Rock, AR, Cincinnati, OH and Salt Lake City, UT.
 
2002
The National Weather Service at North Platte, NE reported huge 7 inch hail three miles east of Halsey, NE.
 
2003
Turin, Italy hit 107°, their hottest day in over the 250 years of record keeping.
 
Grono, Switzerland recorded their hottest day on record as the temperature reached 106.7°.
 
2004
A cold air mass descended over Wisconsin. Several cities reported record low maximum temperatures that are among the coldest ever for the month.
 Three broke old records and two tied records for record low maximum temperatures. High temperatures ranged from 52° in the north to 59° in southern part of the state.
 
In Michigan, cool and cloudy weather was observed with high temperatures only in the 60s. 
Record low maximum temperatures occur at Muskegon with 61°, Grand Rapidswith 63°and 64°at Lansing.
 
Reykjavík, Iceland reached 76.6°, their hottest day ever recorded in the city where records have been kept since the 19th century.
 
2007
Dutch Harbor, AK set their all-time high temperature with a reading of 81°.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 12th:
 
1778
A hurricane stopped an imminent sea battle between British and the French off New England. The storm caused heavy damage in New England.
 
1901
Three inches of rain fell in 40 minutes during the morning at Rancocas, NJ. A similar event occurred in the same region 99 years later.
 
1910
Electrical storms ignited numerous forest fires in the Bitterroot Mountains of Idaho. Entire towns were burned and 163 people died, including 78 firefighters.
 
1933
The temperature at Greenland Ranch in Death Valley, CA hit 127° to establish a U.S. record for the month of August.
 
1936
The temperature at Seymour, TX hit 120° to establish a state record. Altustied the Oklahoma state temperature record by reaching 120°.
 The high of 109° tied the record high for the month of August at Dodge City, KS.
 From the 12th through the 24th, there was a record 13 days on which temperatures reached 100° or more at St. Louis, MO.

1955
Hurricane Connie wound its way across the Atlantic north of the Caribbean, reaching its peak intensity during the afternoon on the 8th about 300 miles northeast of the Bahamas.
 The hurricane weakened before moving onshore in North Carolina early on this date with 80 mph winds.
 Cape Henry, VA, measured a gust to 74 mph and on the 13th Atlantic City, NJ gusted to 70 mph.
 Philadelphia, PA had sustained winds on the 13th of 67 mph along with a gust to 73 mph.
 Connie was not a very destructive storm, but its torrential rains saturated the northeastern U.S., setting it up for massive flooding when, just five days later, 
Hurricane Diane moved up the East Coast and drenched the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast with up to 19 inches of rain. 
The storm brought torrential rains, with Philadelphia, PA receiving 3.29 inches, a daily record and 2.15 inches on the 13th, ending the summer drought. 
New York City received daily records of 3.62 inches on this date and 2.70 inches on the 13th. Up to 12 incvhes fell in the Poconos of northeastern Pennsylvania.
 Westfield, MA was deluged with 18.15 inches of rain in 24 hours, and at Woonsocket, RI the Blackstone River swelled from 70 feet in width to a mile and a half.  
Connecticut and the Delaware valley were hardest hit. Total damage in New England was $800 million dollars, and flooding claimed 187 lives.
 
1982
Sparta, WI recorded their coldest August temperature with 32°. This is also their earliest freezing temperature. La Crosse, WI set a record low with 46°.
 
1985
An F2 tornado set down south of Kendall, WI, destroying a barn and damaging a home before moving northeast into Juneau County. 
The tornado moved from the countryside into New Lisbon, ripping through a trailer court on the northern edge of town before dissipating on the north edge of Castle Rock Lake.
 A couple was killed and 22 others were injured in Juneau County. 
Seventeen of the 35 mobile homes were destroyed while 3 homes and a gasoline station just north of the trailer court were damaged.
 Numerous trees and power lines were downed, including 100 acres of forest at Buckhorn State Park. 
Over $620,000 in damage occurred. This was known as the "New Lisbon Tornado".
 
A major August snowfall closed the Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park Colorado. 
Snowfall amounts of up to 1 inch were reported down to 9,000 feet in the Breckinridge area.
 
1986
Flagstaff, AZ picked up 3.04 inches of rain, the most ever for any August day.
 
1987
Early afternoon thunderstorms in Arizona produced 3.90 inches of rain in 90 minutes at Walnut National Monument,
 located east of Flagstaff, along with 3 inches of pea size hail, which had to be plowed off the roads.
 
1988
Many cities in the northeastern U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date. 
Youngstown, OH reported 26 days of 90 degree weather for the year, a total equal to that for the entire decade of the 1970s.
 Some records included: Buffalo, NY: 93°and Bridgeport, CT: 92°.
 
1989
Thunderstorms were scattered across nearly every state in the Union by late in the day.
 Thunderstorms produced wind gusts to 75 mph at Fergus Falls, MN, and golf ball size hail and wind gusts to 60 mph at Black Creek, WI.
 In the Chicago area, seven people at a forest preserve in North Riverside were injured by lightning.
 
1993
The Great Mississippi River Flood continued as flood waters flowing past Tarbert Landing, MS reached 832,000 cubic feet per second, which is nearly 4 times the normal August flow.
 
1999
Severe thunderstorms developed in west central Illinois during the early evening, and moved to the Indiana border during the next several hours.
 Winds gusting over 80 mph caused over $50 million dollars in crop damage to Schuyler, Mason, Menard, Logan, Cass, Morgan and Scott Counties.
 Miles of power lines were blown down in Cass County, and numerous trees were damaged through the area. 
There was also damage to property caused by falling trees and tree limbs.
 
2000
3.08 inches of rain fell in 45 minutes between 135pm and 220pm at Willingboro, NJ. A similar event occurred in the same region 99 years before.
 
2001
Overnight rains up to 8.4 inches in Sussex County, Delaware led to failure of a dam on Hearns Pond during the early morning.
 Historic Hearns and Rawlings Mills were heavily damaged, along with roads and buildings, with damage at $1.1 million dollars.
 
The temperature at Osoyoos, British Columbia Canada soared to 107° an all-time August record high for the province.
 
2002
Temperatures on the north coast of Crete reached 112° at Iraklion and 107° at Souda Airport. 
Temperatures at those locations generally reach 97°-102° and prior to the 11th and 12th, 
August temperatures at Iraklion had only twice been close to or over 102° since 1980.
 
2004
A surge of unseasonably cool air brought record lows to many areas in the northern Rockies. 
Shirley Basin, WY fell to 30° while Laramie, WY dropped to 33°. Alliance, NE fell to 37° while most other areas reached the lower 40s.
 Record lows included: Casper, WY: 37°, Scottsbluff, NE: 42, Cheyenne, WY: 44 and Denver, CO: 49°.
 
2005
An F2 tornado stuck Wright, WY, killing two people, injuring 13 others, destroying 91 homes and damaging 30 more in and around town.
 
Fresno, CA reached 21 days with a high temperature of 100 degrees or more. This set a new record for their longest such streak.
 
2009
The staff at the Amundsen Station in Antarctica dealt with a low of -87°.
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  August 13th:

1795
The second hurricane of the year caused flooding in the Virginia and North Carolina area contributing to a very wet summer.

1831
A blue sun was widely observed in the southern states. The phenomenon was believed to have pre-staged Nat Turner's slave uprising.

1913
Indianapolis, IN received 1.30 inches of rain in 15 minutes, 1.98 inches in 30 minutes and 2.68 inches in one hour.

1919
High winds and heavy rain struck the Middle Atlantic Coast Region.  In New Jersey, winds gusted to 60 mph at Atlantic City, and 9 inches of rain fell at Tuckerton.
 The wind and rain leveled crops and stripped trees of fruit causing several million dollars damage.

1935
A severe thunderstorm collapsed the roof of the B&O Hall of Transportation Building in Baltimore, MD 
which housed the most important collection of railroad models, pictures, exhibits and stock in the world.
 Many old, fragile locomotives like the Tom Thumb and Thomas Jefferson steam engines escape destruction
 when the largest locomotives lined up in the center of the building acted to hold up the collapsing roof.
 The collection would again be damaged by a collapsing roof in 2003 when the President's Day Snowstorm dumped
 a record 28.2 inches of snow in four days, including 21.8 inches on February 16th.

1947
Victoria, Australia recorded its coldest night on record when the low at Mt. Hotham dropped to 9°.

1955
Hurricane Connie dumped 5 to 8 inches of rain on Southeastern Pennsylvania, ending a drought that had been plaguing the area.

1977
A lightning strike near Indian point, NY triggered a massive 24 hour power blackout in New York City, NY.

1978
4 inches of snow at fell at Salmon, ND.

1980
The afternoon high at New York City, NY was just 89°. But there were 15 days of 90°+ heat during the month, their hottest August on record.

1982
A total of 4.50 inches of rain fell in Searchlight, NV making this the wettest calendar day ever and the only time over 4 inches of rain has fallen on one day.

1985
Hail larger than golf balls, driven by 70 mph winds, mowed down crops, stripped trees, and broke windows, near Logan, KS. 
Road graders cleared 3 foot drifts of hail on Kansas Highway 9 east of Logan.

1986
3.04 inches of rain fell at the National Weather Service Office in Flagstaff, AZ. This is the most rainfall ever recorded for a single day in August. 

1987
A succession of thunderstorms produced rainfall that was unprecedented in 116 years of precipitation records at Chicago, IL
 during an 18 hour period from the evening of the 13th to the early afternoon of the 14th.
 The resulting flash flood was the worst to ever strike the Chicago metropolitan area, causing 3 deaths and water damage that amounted to $221 million dollars.
 O Hare International Airport received an event total of 9.35 inches of rain in 18 hours, shattering the previous 24 hour record of 6.24 inches. 
For a period of about 24 hours, the airport was only accessible from the air as all roads were blocked by high water, including the Kennedy Expressway.
Flooding from the rain continued until the 19th.
Thunderstorms in Mississippi drenched Marion County with up to 15 inches of rain during the morning hours, with 12.2 inches reported at Columbia. 
Floodwaters swept cars away in the Lakeview subdivision of Columbia when the Lakeview Dam broke. Flash flooding caused more than $3 million dollars damage in Marion County.

1988
Many cities in the northeastern U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date. Lansing, 
MI reported a record 35 days of 90 degree weather for the year, Detroit, MI reported a record 37 days of 90 degree heat for the year, 
and Williamsport PA reported a record 38 days of 90 degree weather for the year.

1989
Thunderstorms developing in a tropical air mass over the northeastern U.S. soaked parts of Connecticut and Massachusetts with 4 to 8 inches of rain between the 11th and 13th.  
Hartford, CT received 7.70 inches of rain.

A tornado destroyed the home and stable on a farm east of Estevan, Saskatchewan Canada. Reportedly, a 3-month-old baby was tossed 328 feet.
 Miraculously, after several hours of searching the baby was found unharmed.

1991
It had never rained on this date in Stockton, CA since weather records started in 1906 until this date, when 0.05 of an inch of rain fell.

1993
A cold front progressed into northwest Iowa creating a very unstable air mass out in front of it. 
By mid-evening, strong thunderstorms began to erupt producing high winds, heavy rains and a small tornado. 
The tornado touched down in Emmett County just west of Swea City, SD but did little damage.
 But high straight line winds from the storms caused considerable damage throughout the area. 
A grain bin was blown three quarters of a mile across a field just west of Swea City and very high winds swept across Palo Alto County downing numerous trees and power lines. 
The strongest winds occurred in Graettinger where winds of 80 mph were clocked destroying a few buildings.
 Other reports of damage to outbuildings were common across Winnebago and Palo Alto Counties, but no injuries were reported.
Mother Nature spoiled the day at the Sturgis rally. 
Strong thunderstorms developed in the late morning and afternoon hours producing dangerous lightning and large hail in the Sturgis area in South Dakota. 
Golf ball sized hail and strong winds caused many a problem for vendors. The winds blew away many canopies and signs while lightning injured one man and knocked a tree on a car.

Phoenix, AZ topped out at over 100 degrees for the 65th day in a row. 
This set a new record for consecutive days above 100 degrees breaking the old record of 64 days set back in 1989.

1995
Chicago, IL was in the midst of a four day heat wave where temperatures climbed into the middle 90s and lows were in the mid to upper 70s.
 The low temperature of 77° on this date tied for the record high minimum. Humidity was high and 27 deaths were attributed to the heat wave.
 The majority was in the Chicago area.

2002
Fires were burning over more than 460,000 acres across Oregon as the state's worst wildfire season in over a century continued with a vengeance.
 The wildfires of 2002 had already burned more acreage than the Great Tillamook Burn of Northwest Oregon in 1933.
 Larger wildfires may have occurred before the turn of the century, but records were not kept then.
 The massive Biscuit fire, which resulted from the merger of two other fires to become a mega-fire, had already charred more than 376,000 acres.

Germany registered their record maximum 24 hour precipitation record as 12.29 inches fell from this date through the morning of the 13th at Zinnwald-Georgenfeld in Erzgebergte.
 The storm dumped 14.74 inches of rain in 36 hours.

2003
Paris, France had a string of days with temperatures from the 4th to the 12th above 95°. It ended on this date when the day's high dropped to 90°. 
During the long, hot summer which began on 7/25 several days were above 100°.  4,802 people died from heat-related causes.

Karlsruhe recorded Germany’s hottest day on record as the temperature reached 104.4°.

2004
Hurricane Charley rapidly deepened just hours before landfall near Punta Gorda, FL, going from a Category 2 to a Category 4 hurricane.
 Sustained winds at landfall were 150 mph and the pressure dropped to 941 millibars or 27.79 inHg.
 Extreme wind damage occurred over all of Charlotte County with and 8 foot storm surge in Lee County.
 Well over hurricane force winds in gusts occurred far inland as the hurricane accelerated to the northeast.
 Orlando, FL measured a peak gust of 105 mph; an all-time record wind gust for this location.
 15 people lost their lives to the hurricane and total damage was $14 billion dollars, making Charley the second costliest hurricane up to this time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 14th:
 
Lightning strikes can take many different forms.
 The reason crooked or forked lightning forms is due to the fact that as the precursor to lightning tries to work its way to the ground it searches for the path of least resistance. 
When the atmosphere has too much resistance a new path takes. 
By the time the strike makes contact with the ground it's path has often been altered many times.
 
1724
The first recorded tornado in Pennsylvania history occurred on this date. It moved from Chester to Bucks County.
 
1898
A deadly, estimated F4 tornado moved southeast from 12 miles northwest of Clear Lake, SD passing 7 miles north of town and ending about 4 miles west of Gary.
 Deaths occurred on two farms. One man was killed when the kitchen of his farm house was torn off. 
Five members of one family were killed along with two labors on another farm as every building was swept away.
 Buildings suffered heavy damage on eight farms. This was one of the earliest, estimated F4 tornadoes on record for South Dakota.
 
1933
The Great Tillamook Fire broke out in northwestern Oregon. Over 13 billion board feet of timber was destroyed by the massive fire, devastating the economy of the area.
 
Bakersfield, CA reached 117° to set their all-time record for August.  Hanford reached 115° for the second day in a row, tying their all-time August high temperature record.
 
1936
Temperatures across much of eastern Kansas soared above 110 degrees. Kansas City, MO hit an all-time record high of 113°.
 It was one of 16 consecutive days of 100 degree heat for Kansas City.
 During that summer there were a record 53 days of 100 degree heat, and during the three summer months Kansas City received just 1.12 inches of rain.
 
1953
Hurricane "Barbara" formed in the Bahamas and moved north, recurved over coastal North Carolina then moved northeast to the Canadian Maritimes.
 Cape Henry, VA measured a wind gust to 79 mph and Norfolk, VA gusted to 68 mph. 1953 was the first year that names were used for hurricanes, 
and Barbara was the 1st hurricane with an official name to hit the U.S.
 
1964
Strong Canadian high pressure pushing a cold front to the Gulf of Mexico brought unseasonable chilly air east of the Mississippi. 
The following locations recorded their coldest August temperature: Theilman, MN: 32° (also earliest freezing temperature), Mauston, WI: 33°, and Caledonia, MN: 35°.
  Other daily record lows included: Duluth, MN: 36°, Rochester, MN: 37°, Madison, WI: 37°, Toledo, OH: 39°, Green Bay, WI: 40°, 
Lansing, MI: 40°, Fort Wayne, IN: 41°, Flint, MI: 41°, Grand Rapids, MI: 41°, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN: 43°, La Crosse, WI: 43°, Rockford, IL: 43°, South Bend, IN: 44°, 
Dayton, OH: 44°, Akron, OH: 45°, Columbus, OH: 45°, Youngstown, OH: 45°, Cleveland, OH: 46°, Milwaukee, WI: 47°, Chicago, IL: 48°, Indianapolis, IN: 48°, Cincinnati, OH: 48° and Detroit, MI: 48°.
 
1969
Tropical Storm Camille formed near Grand Cayman Island. From the beginning, it was evident that Camille would be an explosive storm.
 First reports from the reconnaissance plane indicated the storm had already reached tropical storm strength with a central pressure of 999 millibars or 29.50 inHg and sustained winds of 55 mph. 
By afternoon, the storm would already be classified as a hurricane with a central pressure of 964 millibars or 28.64 inHg.
 National Hurricane Center Director Robert Simpson was concerned because the Navy had most of its reconnaissance aircraft
 in Puerto Rico for missions into Hurricane Debbie, which was a candidate for seeding in Project Stormfury.
 
1975
A localized torrential downpour known as “The Hampstead Storm”, dropped 6.72 inches of rain in 2 hours and 35 minutes at Hampstead Heath in London, England. One person died in the storm. 
The water flooded the Underground and forced sewer covers up.
 
1979
Storms dropped 1.56 inches of rain on Las Vegas, NV. The thunderstorms also knocked out power for up to 12 hours.
 
1980
The temperature reached the century mark for the 53rd time in Dallas, TX, establishing the all-time record for 100 degree plus days in a year.
 
1987
Extremely heavy rains fell across northern Illinois beginning the previous day ending on this date. 
O’Hare Airport received 6.49 inches of rain setting a single day precipitation total for Chicago and 9.35 inches in 18 hours. 
The airport was literally an island from the morning on this date through the morning of the 15th as was only accessible by air. 
 Rockford set their all-time daily precipitation total with 5.70 inches. Flooding continued for another five days before waters began to recede. 
The suburbs of Des Plaines, Elk Grove Village, Mount Prospect, Arlington Heights and Wheeling were especially hard hit
 as basements filled to the ceiling and water occupied the first floor of thousands of structures.
 The flood claimed three lives in the Chicago area and one near Rockford.  Damage was estimated at $220 million dollars.
 
1988
Many cities in the northeastern U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date including New York (Central Park), NY: 99°, Albany, NY: 97°, 
New York (LaGuardia Airport), NY: 97° and Pittsburgh, PA: 96°. Portland, ME reported a record 14 straight days of 80 degree weather. Milwaukee, 
WI reported a record 34 days of 90 degree heat for the year. The water temperature of Lake Erie at Buffalo, NY reached 80°, breaking the old record of 79° set in July 1987.  
Afternoon and evening thunderstorms resulted in about 50 reports of severe weather in the northeastern U.S. 
One person was killed at Stockbridge, MI when a tornado knocked a tree onto their camper.
 
1989
Afternoon thunderstorms in Illinois soaked the town of Battendorf with 2.10 inches of rain in 30 minutes. 
Evening thunderstorms in Montana produced wind gusts to 66 mph at Hobson.
 
Three tornados touched down across the New Brunswick province in Canada. In Carlisle, 
one tornado uprooted trees and demolished a barn but spared 22 of 24 glass storm windows stored inside.
 
1993
The Great Mississippi River Flood continued as the crest reached New Orleans, LA, but was hardly noticed as the wider and deeper river only rose to 12.5 feet.
 Flood stage is 17 feet. The only real effect noticed was the unusual amount of debris in the water.
 
1996
Arizona recorded its record wind gust of 114 mph at the Deer Valley Airport on the north side of Phoenix as a severe thunderstorm downburst hit the area.
 
1998
An intense cluster of thunderstorms produced high winds, locally heavy rain and an impressive lightning display as they rolled through the Las Vegas Valley in Nevada. 
Several roofs were blown off mobile homes in North Las Vegas and gusts up to 72 mph were measured at Apex. Firefighters had to rescue at least five motorists stranded by flash flood.
 Lightning strikes damaged several transformers, temporarily cutting electricity to about 7,200 people. Lightning also struck a home in the northwest area of Summerlin causing minor damage.
 
2002
A 594 decameter area of high pressure off the Carolina coast produced hot south to southwesterly winds ahead of a cold front bringing record heat to parts of the east. 
The temperature in Boston, MA reached 101°, equaling their August record (8/2/1975).  Other daily records included: Syracuse, NY: 101°, Concord, NH: 99°, 
Hartford, CT: 99°, Allentown, PA: 99°, Philadelphia, PA: 99°, Milton, MA: 98°, Providence, RI: 98°, Rochester, NY: 97°, Harrisburg, PA: 97°, Burlington, VT: 96°, 
Binghamton, NY: 95° and Erie, PA: 94°.
 
In San Angelo, TX, just after midnight, a descending heat-burst jumped the temperature from 75° to 94° in 30 minutes. The event ended about 90 minutes later when the temperature fell back to 73°.
 
5.36 inches of rain fell at Vienna, Austria during a 3 day period ending on this date. The monthly average here is 2.72 inches. In the nearby mountains 9 to 13 inches of rain fell.
 
2003
A heat wave began in the northern Plains; lasting through the 17th.  Residents in Bismarck, ND endured a record string of four consecutive days with temperatures above 100°.
 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 15th:

Often on days when we receive thunderstorms you can walk outside and feel the large amount of moisture in the air. 
In fact, the strongest thunderstorms usually develop in air masses that contain large amounts of moisture near the surface. 
Indeed, thunderstorms can be quite greedy when it comes to moisture. Even a small thunderstorm, only a few miles in diameter, 
can easily contain over a million tons of condensed ice and water.

1281
A possible typhoon over the Sea of Japan became known as "The Divine Wind" or “Kamikaze” when it destroyed an approaching Chinese invasion fleet.

1787
Tornadoes were reported in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. Wethersfield, CT was hard hit by the outbreak. 
The event is regarded to be the most significant tornado outbreak in early New England history.

1886
A tornado moved northeast from 5 miles southwest of Newark, SD through town and into North Dakota. 
Only three buildings were reportedly undamaged at Newark, and a bartender at a saloon was killed. 
Three people died in two homes on adjoining farms two miles southwest of town. A saddle from a Newark stable was carried for a half mile. 
In North Dakota, homes and barns was damaged along the Wild River. This tornado was estimated as an F3.

1928
The hottest reading ever in the province of Quebec, Canada occurred as Bark Lake hit 104°.

1933
450 firefighters were battling two major blazes in Oregon finest as the Tillamook Burn was raging out of control. 
Temperatures over 100° and very low humidity along with a steady east wind fanned the flames. 
An area comparable to half the size of Rhode Island was destroyed by the forest fires, which caused around $600 million in economic losses.

1946
St. Louis, MO was deluged with a record 8.78 inches of rain in 24 hours.

1950
In 45 years of Hawaiian meteorological records, a hurricane had never affected the islands. 
On this date, Hurricane Hiki was moving north of the islands. Residents held their breath when the storm turned southwestward.
 Fortunately, the storm resumed its westward course and missed the islands. The highest wind speed recorded was at Kilauea Lighthouse, Kauai at 68 mph.

1967
The "Sundance Fire" in northern Idaho was started on this date by lightning.
 Winds of 50 mph carried firebrands as much as 10 miles in advance to ignite new fires, and as a result, the forest fire spread 20 miles across the Selkirk Mountains in just 12 hours,
 burning 56,000 acres. The heat of the fire produced whirlwinds of flame with winds up to 300 mph which flung giant trees about like matchsticks.

1969
Camille became a hurricane south of Cuba and entered the Gulf of Mexico as a major hurricane with winds of 115 mph.

1971
Some of the worst flooding that ever occurred in western north Texas happened on this date.
 Heavy rain began on the 14th, but the worst of the rain and most of the flooding was on this date. 
On that day, rainfall amounted 4 to 11 inches. The Wichita River, on the northwest side of Wichita Falls, TX crested at its highest level in 30 years. 
At least 10 families were forced to evacuate their homes along the river as the waters rapidly rose.
 The river also rose so high that its swift-flowing waters undercut several streets, causing them to collapse. 
The official rainfall at the National Weather Service Office in Wichita Falls was 4.52 inches, making this the wettest August day ever observed in the city.

Hurricane Beth soaked Nova Scotia, Canada with up to a foot of rain. 
The deluge caused considerable crop damage and swamped highways and bridges, temporarily isolating communities on the eastern mainland of the province.

1977
Lightning struck a cement well covering near Mankato, MN, causing shattered pieces of concrete to be blown over 30 feet, damaging cars.

Hurricane Doreen tracked north-northwest along the west coast of Baja California, dissipating over the coastal waters.
 Areas of southern California received at least two inches of rain with up to 8 inches in the mountains on this date through the 17th.
This occurred during the El Nino of 1977-78. Among the impressive totals was Borrego Springs where 2.53 inches of rain fell in just six hours; 
a 100 year event. Debris flows and flooding from Henderson Canyon into the Borrego Springs De Anza area damaged 100 homes. Mud flows grew to five feet deep. 
Flooded roads resulted in desert areas.  Four people died and damage was set at $25 million dollars. 

1979
Early season chill across the Midwest and East produced record low temperatures for the date including: International Falls, MN: 33°, 
Grand Forks, ND: 36°, Madison, WI: 37°, St. Cloud, MN: 39°, Fargo, ND: 43°, La Crosse, WI: 43°, Dubuque, IA: 45°, Peoria, IL: 45°, Indianapolis, IN: 
45°, Mansfield, OH: 46°-Tied, Moline, IL: 47°-Tied, Akron, OH: 47°-Tied, Youngstown, OH: 47°-Tied and Cincinnati, OH: 49°.

1985
Lightning struck a farmhand near New Whitehall, NY. After he was revived, en-route to the hospital, 
his ambulance was hit by lightning, resulting in a fire and explosion which slightly injured the medics.
 Unfortunately, the farmhand later died at the hospital.

1987
Thunderstorms developing ahead of a sharp cold front produced severe weather in the Upper Midwest during the afternoon and evening hours, 
with Minnesota and eastern South Dakota hardest hit.
 A thunderstorm in west central Minnesota spawned a tornado at Eagle Lake which killed one person and injured eight others. 
A severe thunderstorm produced very large hail in Brown County in South Dakota.
 The size of the hail stone was 4.5 inches in diameter, and fell on the southwest corner of Warner.
 This storm also produced F1 tornado that touchdown about two miles southwest of Warner.
 An estimated wind gust of 60 mph was also reported about two miles north-northwest of Stratford.

The temperatures reached 101.4° in Barcelona, Spain; their hottest day on record.

1988
Many cities in 20 states in the north central and northeastern U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date, including Lamoni, IA and Baltimore, MD, with 105°.
 Powerful thunderstorms blew through the Washington, D.C. area producing wind gusts to 70 mph. 
Up to 100,000 homes and businesses were without power. Temperatures 100° and above were reported in 22 states. Pierre, SD was the hot spot in the nation with 114°.
 Bluefield WV reported 8 straight days of record heat. Other record highs included: Rapid City, SD: 106°, Des Moines, IA: 104°, Waterloo, IA: 
104°, Peoria, IL: 102°, Dulles Airport, VA: 102°, Atlantic City, NJ: 100°, Rockford, IL: 99°, Charleston, WV: 99°, Roanoke, VA: 99°, Newark, NJ: 99°, Harrisburg, PA: 99°, 
Dubuque, IA: 98°, Dayton, OH: 98°, Lynchburg, VA: 98°, Philadelphia, PA: 98°, New York (Kennedy Airport), NY: 98°, Louisville, KY: 97°, Bristol, TN: 97°, Allentown, PA: 97°,
 Williamsport, PA: 97°, New York (Central Park), NY: 97°, Hartford, CT: 97°-Tied, Indianapolis, IN: 96°, 
Wallops Island, VA: 95°, Bridgeport, CT: 95°, Elkins, WV: 93°, International Falls, MN: 89° and Islip, NY: 88°.

1993
Slow moving thunderstorms produced torrential rain across Mower County, MN. Rainfall exceeded 4.00" over most of the county with the highest total of 10.25" at Adams, MN.
 Significant flooding occurred within the city of Austin, MN, where 1,000 homes suffered water damage.
 Most of the damage occurred when sewer systems backed up into basements, but several homes suffered flood damage from both the Cedar River and Turtle Creek which flow through the city. 
The Cedar River in Austin rose rapidly out of its banks through the day. It crested at 21.3 feet, 6.3 feet above flood stage. 
Up to this time, it was the second highest stage of record for Austin, being surpassed only by the July 17, 1978, flood which crested at 21.9 feet. 
Several basements were flooded near Granger, MN as the Upper Iowa River overflowed its banks. 
In excess of 4.00" of rain fell in a short period of time across southern portions of Fillmore County, Minnesota.

Hurricane Fernanda, east of Hawaii, had a well-developed eye 85 miles in diameter with winds of 100 mph.

1994
Tropical Storm Beryl formed in the northeast Gulf of Mexico and moved slowly east northeast, crossing the Florida panhandle coastline near Panama City. 
Beryl greatly added to the woes of people who were still recovering from Tropical Storm Alberto in July.
 At landfall the maximum sustained wind was estimated at 60 mph. 
The maximum reported storm tide of 2.9 feet and the greatest rainfall total of 10.69 inches were observed at Apalachicola, 
but higher values likely occurred to the east of this location.
 Beryl weakened to a tropical depression as it moved northeast into extreme southwest Georgia at early on the 16th. 
There were no deaths and only 1 injury directly attributable to Beryl and damage was estimated at $5.9 million dollars. 
Coastal damage included tidal flooding that undermined a few roads and houses and eroded beaches and sea walls. 
Several moored boats were damaged and three people on a fishing boat offshore the panhandle had to be rescued. 
Winds did minor roof damage and downed trees and signs along the coast. Inland, trees were blown down damaging roofs and power was lost to 20,000 customers. 
The heavy rain caused flooding of low lying areas that lasted more than a week, damaging houses and vehicles. The oyster beds in Apalachicola Bay closed due to contamination. 
23 tornadoes were caused by the remnants of Beryl in South Carolina.

1995
Apalachicola, FL set their all-time record high with a reading of 103°. Lake City, FL also hit 103°. A man died of heatstroke in Lake City.

In Bermuda, Hurricane Felix postponed a vote on political independence from Britain. 
Reminded of the high cost of independence, the colony would defeat the measure 3-1.

2002
Odessa, on the Black Sea coast of the Ukraine, recorded 4.18 inches of rain in 12 hours. The average August rainfall there is 1.28 inches of rain.
 The rain was caused by the same weather system responsible for some of central Europe's worst flooding on record.

2004
Severe flooding in Death Valley National Park in California caused extensive flooding. 
The flooding completely washed away several miles of roadway and caused damage to several rest areas. Two people traveling along Highway 190 were caught in the flooding and killed. 
Damage was estimated at $20 million dollars and took 3 months to completely repair the damage.

Yakutat, Alaska reported their all-time record high temperature of 88°.

2008
With Doppler radar indicating intense circulations within thunderstorms sweeping the area, New York City was placed under an uncommon tornado warning. 
While no tornadoes were confirmed, a mircroburst from the thunderstorms downed trees and power lines and produced structural damage near the border of the Bronx and Westchester County.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 16th:
1879
A massive waterspout was observed at Barnstable, MA.

1888
A tornado killed nine people and injured 14 others at St. Zotique-Valleyfield, Quebec Canada.

1909
A dry spell began in San Bernardino County of southern California that lasted until the 5/6/1912, a stretch of 994 days. Another dry spell, lasting 767 days, then began in October, 1912.

1916
Altapass, NC was deluged with 22.22 inches of rain in 24 hours to establish a state record.

1946
St. Louis, MO set its 24 hour rainfall record with a deluge of 8.78 inches on this date through the 16th.

1969
During the early evening, an Air Force Reconnaissance plane investigating Hurricane Camille in the Gulf of Mexico found an unbelievably low central pressure of 905 millibars or 26.72 inHg. 
This information allowed forecasters to warn residents along the coast that Camille would cause damage of unprecedented proportions.

1978
One foot of snow fell at Yellowstone National Park in northwestern Wyoming.

1979
High pressure from Canada brought record cold temperatures for a second straight morning to part of the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley. 
Muskegon, MI set an all-time August low of 36°. Lansing, MI fell to 39°. Other record lows included: Ste. St. Marie, MI: 37°, Madison, WI: 38°,
 Grand Rapids, MI: 40°, Marquette, MI: 41°, Youngstown, OH: 42°, Detroit, MI: 43°, Flint, MI: 43°, Akron, OH: 44°, Mansfield, OH: 44°, Toledo, OH: 44°,
 Cleveland, OH: 45°, Milwaukee, WI: 46°, Columbus, OH: 46°-Tied, Fort Wayne, IN: 47°, Erie, PA: 47°, Rochester, NY: 47°, Cincinnati, OH: 49°-Tied and Indianapolis, IN: 50°.

A rare southwestern tornado destroyed two homes at Pinon, CA near Palm Springs.

1980
Massive flooding was reported in Texas along the Cueces and Frio Rivers. Heavy rainfall from Hurricane Allen pushed rivers to levels to as much as 10 feet above flood stage.

1981
On this date through the 19th, the center of Tropical Storm Dennis moved slowly through the Florida Straits and onto the lower southwest coast the next morning.
 Dennis then moved northeastward through southern Florida, emerging into the Atlantic between Cape Canaveral and Daytona Beach early on the 18th, taking nearly three days to cross the state.
 Highest winds occurred mostly in squalls well east of the center. The highest wind gusts reported with Dennis were 55 to 60 mph along the lower southeast coast on the 17th.
 Two tornadoes were reported in Plantation Key and Haulover Beach as Dennis moved through the Keys and Florida Bay, but no injuries or significant damage resulted.

The primary damage in Dennis resulted from widespread flooding in agricultural areas and was most severe in the extreme southern part of Florida Peninsula. 
10 to 20 inches of rain fell south and east of Lake Okeechobee, with amounts of 5 to 10 inches reported along the southeast and east-central coast.
 West Kendall measured 20.37 inches and amounts of 19 to 20 inches were common through the Homestead/Florida City area. 
Besides agricultural damage, flood water came into many homes and businesses in the Homestead/Florida City area, and into most homes in the East Everglades area.

1986
Thunderstorms containing devastating winds ripped across sections of eastern South Dakota. 
Winds gusting to 100 mph uprooted trees and damaged buildings across northern Hanson County.
 In Fulton, two steel bins were destroyed and the town was without power for 10 hours. Several farms had all of their barns, silos, garages, and small buildings wiped out from the extreme winds.

A powerful thunderstorm rolled across extreme northeast Nebraska and northwest Iowa. 
Winds were estimated at 70 mph across portions of Dixon and Dakota Counties uprooting numerous trees and damaging homes and power lines.
 Across the Missouri River in Woodbury County, Sioux City received 60 mph winds causing some power outages and scattered damage across town.

1987
Afternoon and evening thunderstorms developing along a cold front produced severe weather from Oklahoma to Wisconsin and Lower Michigan.
 Thunderstorms in central Illinois produced wind gusts to 80 mph at Springfield which toppled two large beer tents at the state fair injuring 58 people.
 Severe thunderstorms moved across northern Illinois producing winds of 40 to 80 mph with hail and from 1 to 5 inches of rain. 
Chicago was drenched with 2.90 inches of rain, making the month their wettest month on record.  Total damage was $12 million dollars; primarily due to flooding in the Chicago area.

1988
Thunderstorms developing along a slow moving cold front produced severe weather from North Dakota to Lower Michigan during the day. 
Nine tornadoes were sighted in North Dakota, and thunderstorms also produced hail 3 inches in diameter at Lakota, ND, and wind gusts to 83 mph at Marais, MI.  

Water temperature at Jersey Shore, NH was only 53.1°, breaking the old record. Just two weeks earlier, the surf temperature had been a balmy 79°.

Record highs were recorded across the Midwest and Ohio Valley. Rockford, IL tied their August high temperature with 104°. 
Other record highs included: Indianapolis, IN: 102°, Peoria, IL: 102°, Springfield, IL: 102°, Madison, WI: 102°, Paducah, KY: 
102°-Tied, Moline, IL: 101°, La Crosse, WI: 101°, Milwaukee, WI: 100°, Louisville, KY: 100°, Cincinnati, OH: 100°, Evansville, IN: 100°, Roanoke, VA: 99°, 
Green Bay, WI: 99°, Jackson, KY: 99°-Tied, Lexington, KY: 98°, South Bend, IN: 98°, Chicago, IL: 98°, Charleston, WV: 96°and Fort Wayne, IN: 95°.

1989
Late afternoon and evening thunderstorms in the Central Plains produced golf ball size hail at La Junta CO, Intercanyon, CO, and Custer, SD.  

Afternoon thunderstorms over South Texas drenched Brownsville with 2.60 inches of rain.  

Fair skies allowed viewing of the late evening full lunar eclipse from the Great Lakes Region to the Northern and Central Plains Region, 
and across much of the western third of the country.

1992
Hurricane Andrew, destined to become the third strongest land falling United States hurricane, was born far out in the Eastern Atlantic as a tropical depression.

1994
A male tourist drowned in a rip current at Miramar Beach near Destin, FL while saving his daughter. 
The rip current was caused by swells and strong onshore winds in the wake of Tropical Storm Beryl.

1997
A slow moving thunderstorm produced heavy rain over the southern portion of Cheyenne. Some intersections in south Cheyenne were flooded with 2 to 3 feet of water.

2000
Strong thunderstorm wind gusts of 80 to 100 mph moved through the community of Golden Shores, NV causing one million dollars in damage. 
Two mobile homes were destroyed and 17 other mobile homes and frame houses were unlivable. Another 117 homes received minor damage.
 In addition, numerous pontoon boats were either flipped over or destroyed and several windows were broken on homes and cars. 
The storm snapped several power lines which cut power, in turn cutting the town’s water supply.

2002
Thunderstorms moved onshore from LakeOntario during the late afternoon hours producing damaging winds. The winds downed trees and power lines at Watertown.
 A gust of 78 mph was recorded by the Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS) at the Oswego County Airport at Fulton.
 Near the airport, several large trees were downed, one causing minor structural damage to a house.

4.22 inches of rain fell at Lincoln, NE breaking the August daily precipitation record.

The Elbe River normally flows peacefully through the historic city of Dresden, Germany. 
 But on this date it was an angry brown torrent that looked more like a fast flowing lake than a river as it churned through the town. 
Swollen with floodwaters from the Czech River Vltava, the Elbe reached a record flood stage of 30.5 feet and still rising.

2004
A storm dumped 2.4 inches of rainfall in just a few hours on southwest England causing flash flooding in the town of Boscastle, 
a popular summer tourist area with sandy beaches, in northern Cornwall.
 Local officials report an estimated 3 foot wall of water poured through the streets at 40 mph.

2007
Japan sweltered through their hottest day on record as the mercury hit 105.6° in the western city of Tajimi and also the central city of Kumagayathe. 
The Hachioji region of Tokyo hit 101.6°, a new record for August. The heat wave reportedly claimed at least 13 lives 
with 886 people taken to hospitals across the nation suffering from heat related illnesses.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 17th:
1885
Amos, CA hit 130°, a U.S. record for August.

1899
The “San Cirriaoe” hurricane struck the North Carolina coast. 50 people were killed and 13 vessels were either beached or lost on or near the coast.

1915
After the Hurricane of 1900, the city of Galveston, TX built a seawall 17 feet above sea level and 5 miles long. 
The next hurricane to hit Galveston occurred on this date with winds gusting to 120 mph. The storm surge reached 12 feet. 
275 fatalities resulted, in stark contrast to the 6,000 deaths in the 1900 storm. Only 10% of the 250 homes remaining outside the seawall survived.

1917
This was the last day with a high temperature at Death Valley, CA reaching or exceeding 120°. The streak began on July 17.

1933
Lower temperatures, higher humidities and a misting rain gave firefighters a temporary break in the series of forest fires known as the Tillamook Burn in northwestern Oregon.
But the relief was temporary and the fires would rage out of control again the next day, becoming a fire storm that would burn 550 square miles of some of the world's best timber.

1967
The "Sundance Fire" in northern Idaho was started by lightning. Winds of 50 mph carried firebrands as much as 10 miles in advance to ignite new fires, and as a result,
 the forest fire spread 20 miles across the Selkirk Mountains in just 12 hours, burning 56,000 acres. 
The heat of the fire produced whirlwinds of flame with winds up to 300 mph which flung giant trees about like matchsticks.

1969
Camille, the second worst hurricane in U.S. history, smashed into the Mississippi coast, making landfall at Pass Christian, MS with sustained winds of 190 mph and gusts well over 200 mph.
 Winds gusted to 172 mph at Main Pass Block, LA, and to 190 mph near Bay Saint Louis, MS. Several ocean going ships were carried over seven miles inland by the hurricane.
 The hurricane produced a storm surge of 24.6 feet. Complete destruction occurred in some coastal areas near the eye of the hurricane. 
At Pensacola, FL, tides ran as high as 6.3 feet above normal. Crop damage was estimated near a half million dollars. 
 As a result, 143 people perished along the coast with 27 others missing.
 The noise level in the storm was measured at 120 decibels, the equivalent of a rocket engine. Camille's legacy of damage did not end there.
 Another 113 people would die in flash floods and landslides caused by rainfall from the dying cyclone over the Appalachian Mountains.
 A total of 5,571 people would be injured. Damage exceeded $1.3 billion dollars.

1979
Record cold occurred from the Deep South to New England. Frost was observed in the mountains of West Virginia. Albany, NY: 40°, Concord, NH: 40°-Tied, Elkins, WV: 41°,
 Burlington, VT: 42°-Tied, Avoca, PA: 43°, Sterling (Dulles Airport), VA: 44°, Syracuse, NY: 44°, Williamsport, PA: 45°, Hartford, CT: 45°, Atlantic City, NJ: 46°, 
Allentown, PA: 46°, Rochester, NY: 46°, Roanoke, VA: 48°, Charleston, WV: 48°, Harrisburg, VA: 48°, Bristol, TN: 49°, Wilmington, DE: 49°, Huntington, WV: 50°, 
Cincinnati, OH: 50°, Greensboro, NC: 50°, Philadelphia, PA: 50°, Oak Ridge, TN: 51°, Lexington, KY: 52°, Evansville, IN: 52°, Raleigh, NC: 52°, Lynchburg, VA: 52°, 
Nashville, TN: 53°, Baltimore, MD: 53°, Greenville-Spartanburg, SC: 54°, Charlotte, NC: 55°, Newark, NJ: 55°, Bridgeport, CT: 55°, Paducah, KY: 56°, Richmond, VA: 56°, 
NYC (Central Park), NY: 56°, NYC (Kennedy Airport), NY: 56°, Tupelo, MS: 57°, Wallops Island, VA: 57°, NYC (LaGuardia Airport), NY: 58°, Chattanooga, TN: 59°, Wilmington, NC: 59° and Charleston, SC: 62°.

5 to 7 inches of rain fell across the North Concho River north of San Angelo, TX causing the River to rise 15 feet. Rising waters nearly swept away several campers.

1981
6.89 inches of rain fell at Caribou, Maine for its greatest 24 hour rainfall on record.

1983
A total of 3.05 inches of rain fell in Bullhead City, NV which was the greatest one day total on record.

1987
Evening thunderstorms produced severe weather in the northern and central Plains. One thunderstorm spawned a tornado near Fairbury,
 NE, along with baseball size hail and wind gusts to 100 mph, causing severe crop damage west of town.

Several cities across the eastern U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date; including Syracuse, NY with 97°, their hottest in 22 years.

1988
Many cities, from the Mid-Mississippi Valley to the Mid-Atlantic Coast Region, reported record high temperatures for the date as the incredible summer heat continued.
 Beckley, WV reported an all-time record high of 96°, and Baltimore, MD hit 104°, marking their 13th day of the year with 100 degree heat. 
Chicago, IL equaled a record with 46 days of 90 degree heat for the year.

The following locations recorded their hottest August temperature: Charles City, IA: 104°, New Hampton, IA: 104°, Platteville, WI: 103°, 
also hottest day on record, Oelwein, IA: 103°, also tied with 7/31/1988 for hottest day on record, Hillsboro, WI: 101°, also hottest day on record, and Lynxville, 
WI: 101°, also tied for hottest day with 7/7/1980.

Champaign, IL high of 102° was the warmest August temperature on record.

Grand Rapids, MI set a record high with 98° along with Lansing, MI with 95° and Muskegon, MI with 93°.

Thunderstorms produced severe weather from Wisconsin to New Jersey. 
Thunderstorms in New Jersey produced wind gusts to 92 mph at Wrightstown, and blew down a circus tent at Lavallette injuring 14 people.
 An F2 tornado hit Ewing Township, from near Mercer Co airport to Trenton, damaging homes and vehicles, and an F2 touched down in Salem Co, New Jersey. 
An F0 tornado touched down in Lakewood, NJ, uprooting trees, with 14 people receiving injuries.

1989
Morning thunderstorms produced 3 to 6 inch rains in Oklahoma, and the Ark-La-Tex area of Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana.
 Tom, OK reported 5.98 inches of rain, and Foreman AR received 5.55 inches.

Evening thunderstorms produced high winds in the Wasatch Front of northern Utah. 
Thunderstorm winds gusted to 66 mph at Salt Lake City, UT and flash flooding caused up to $2 million dollars damage to a marina on Lake Powell.

1992
After nearly dissipating, Andrew became a tropical storm on this date.

Tropical air brought high temperatures and heat to the Los Angeles Basin for a week. On this date in Los Angeles, the temperature hit 99° with a heat index of 110°. 

1994
One of the most memorable severe thunderstorms in recent history struck north-central and central Oklahoma.
 The communities of Lahoma and Drummond suffered the most damage from an unusually intense supercell storm that moved south into Oklahoma near Manchester, and
 continued across Goltry, Lahoma, Drummond, Kingfisher, and Okarche.
 Widespread severe damage occurred to between 500 and 800 permanent homes and businesses, and 
between 80 and 120 mobile homes, all the result of very large hail driven by hurricane-force winds. 
Peak wind gusts in Lahoma were measured at 113 mph, before the wind equipment gave out. 
Wind gusts to 113 mph were recorded at Meno, OK, 104 mph at Mangum, OK and 97 mph at Hobart, OK. 30 mobile homes were destroyed by hail and wind at Okarche, OK. 
Hailstones measured 4.5 inches in diameter. Hail reached golf ball to baseball size along the entire storm track. 
One hailstone that fell between Kingfisher and Okarche was said to look like a football. 
Several people were treated for hypothermia in the Lahoma area as a result of the large volume of hail, as air temperatures fell from near 100°, down into the lower 50s.

Boise, ID recorded their 41st day in a row with maximum temperatures of 90 degrees or higher to set a new all-time record for the city. 

Grand Junction, CO hit 100° for its latest 100 degree temperature on record.

1995
Hurricane Felix stalled off the Mid-Atlantic Coast after upper atmosphere winds that had been steering it faded away.
 An area of high pressure to the west blocked movement farther inland.  
Another area of high pressure to the east blocked movement back over the Atlantic. Both areas of high pressure were weak and didn't generate strong steering currents. 
The west-to-east winds that could push Felix away from the U.S. were far to the north. 
As a result, Felix milled around in the same general area on the 17th and 18th before it began drifting slowly eastward, away from the U.S. on the 19th.

1999
A tornado brushes Domain, Manitoba damaging rooftops and knocking down trees. 
The same storm system drops hail the size of quarters on Winnipeg and 2 inch hail on Sanford and Starbuck.

2002
Record coldest August temperature at Sheridan, WY fell to 32°; not only recording their coldest August low temperature but also the earliest freeze on record.

A morning to early afternoon rainfall dumped 1.4 inches of rain in just 6 hours at Alexandroupolis, Greece. 
The average August rainfall is 0.7 inches.

Between the 14th and 17th East London on the southeastern coast of South Africa was very wet;
 during a 72 hour period 12.88 inches of rain fell, 11.50 inches of it in a 42 hour period; 
of which an incredible 8.27 inches of rain fell in just 3 hours during the evening on the 15th.
 The average August rainfall here is 1.69 inches. East London wasn't the only place hit by severe weather during this period;
 Port Alfred recorded 2.99 inches, Patensie 2.35 inches, Port Elizabeth 2.70 inches and Uitenhage 3.18 inches.

2003
Chadron, MErecorded the last of26 consecutive days with a high temperature of at least 90 degrees, their longest such streak on record.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 August 18th:
1906
California is generally protected from Pacific tropical storms by persistent summer high pressure near Hawaii that send tropical storms pin-wheeling to the west, away from the state.
 But sometimes that protection is not there, as during an unusually strong El Nino event. 
On this date, an unusual tropical storm came up into the Gulf of California and the southwestern United States, giving Needles, CA 5.66 inches of rain; twice their normal yearly rainfall.

1909
Bagdad, in San Bernardino County of California, reported no precipitation for 993 consecutive days from this date to 5/6/1912.

1910
The Idaho "Big Blow Up" of forest fires finally came to an end. 1,736 fires burned 3 million acres. 85 people were killed; including 78 firefighters. 
Smoke from the fires spread 1/3 of the way around the world, darkening the sun across parts of the U.S. and Canada.

1917
The high temperature in Death Valley, CA was 119°. This ended a record streak of 43 consecutive days with the high temperature 120° or hotter.

1924
9.4 inches of rain fell at Cannington, Somerset England setting the August rainfall record for the United Kingdom. 

1925
During the late morning hours a severe hailstorm struck southeastern Iowa; completely destroying crops along a path 6 to 10 miles wide and 75 miles long.
 The hail also injured and killed poultry and livestock, and caused a total of $2.5 million dollars damage. 
The hailstorm flattened fields of corn to such an extent that many had to leave their farms in search of other work. It was one of the worst hailstorms on record for the nation.

1927
460 miles east of Luzon, Philippines, the pressure in an unnamed Typhoon fell to 887 millibars or 26.18 inHg, one of the lowest surface measurements on record.

1933
Over 1,000 firefighters were battling two major fires in northwestern Oregon's Tillamook Burn. The fires covered more than 25 square miles of forest.
 The eventual toll would be 13 million board feet of timber, resulting in an economic loss of $600 million dollars.

1935
Temperatures soared to record highs in each of the Maritime Provinces in Canada. Rexton, New Brunswick hit 103°,
 Collegeville, Nova Scotia: hit 101° and Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island hit to 98°.

1936
An average of the temperatures at 113 reporting stations in Iowa measured 106.5°, making this the hottest day in the state's history.

1943
Autumn was in the air with record low temperatures of 41° at Grand Rapids, MI and 43° at Muskegon, MI.

1955
Hurricane Diane became the second hurricane to strike the United States East Coast in less than a week. 
Diane weakened as it crossed colder water left in the wake of Hurricane Connie, but the rainfall did not diminish. 
The storm moved across the North Carolina coast then recurved to the northeast, passing very near Philadelphia, PA then to the southern coast of New England. 
Diane's heavy rains, up to 13 inches in the Poconos, added to those of Connie 5 days earlier, brought massive flooding to the Mid Atlantic and the northeast.
 Westfield, MA recorded 18.15 inches of rain in just 24 hours to establish the 24 hour mark for the state.
  Boston, MA had 8.40 inches, their greatest 24 hour total ever.
 At one point, 40% of Worcester, MA was under water. Up to 200 people were killed with $800 million dollars in damage.

1980
Three inches of snow fell at McCall, ID, a sign of the changing seasons.

1983
Hurricane Alicia ravaged southeastern Texas making landfall near Galveston, TX with sustained winds at 115 mph, gusting to 130 mph and a storm surge of 12 feet.
 22 tornadoes touched down within 24 hours after landfall. 12 fatalities and 1,800 were injured.
 Glass was blown out of downtown skyscrapers in Houston, TX as winds gusted to 78 mph.
 Fires broke out throughout Houston and firefighters were hampered by low water pressure. Total storm damage was $3 billion dollars.

Strong thunderstorm winds ripped across portions of central and northeast South Dakota on this date through the 19th. Winds of up to 80 mph were recorded.
 In Presho, the winds tore the roofs from several homes and leveled barns and outbuildings. The city of Aberdeen and its airport were also hit quite hard.
 Two hangers at the airport received extensive damage with their roofs and doors blown off. Two planes were tipped over and a third had one of its wings twisted 180 degrees.
 All across the city of Aberdeen windows were broken, trees were down, and roofs damaged as the storms tore through the city.

1987
Several cities in the eastern U.S. reported record high temperatures for the date, including Orlando, FL with 98°and Portland, ME with a high of 94°. 
Newark, NJ reached 90° for the 36th time, their second highest total on record.

1988
Many cities, from the Carolinas to the Upper Ohio Valley, reported record high temperatures for the date, 
pushing the total number of daily record highs since the first of June above 1,100.
 Afternoon highs of 105°at Raleigh, NC and 102°at Greensboro, NC equaled all-time records.
 This date marked the 13th time this year that the temperature had exceeded the 100 degree mark in downtown Baltimore, MD with 104°. 
This is the most 100 degree days in any year since official records began in 1873.

Evening thunderstorms in Montana produced wind gusts to 75 mph at Scobey.

1989
Thunderstorms over the Mid-Atlantic Coast and the Upper Ohio Valley produced torrential rains in eastern Virginia during the late morning and afternoon hours. 
Totals ranged up to 12 inches at Yorktown. Williamsburg, VA recorded 10.78 inches of rain between 6am and 10am, with 6.72 inches reported in just two hours.
 Flash flooding caused nearly $12 million dollars damage in Accomack County, Virginia. Part of Maryland's Eastern Shore was deluged with 6 to 10 inches of rain.
 Unofficial reports from parts of Delaware indicated as much as 20 inches fell. 39 bridges were closed or washed out. 72 roads were closed or damaged.

Early evening thunderstorms over the Central Plains Region produced walnut size hail and wind gusts to 80 mph around Casper, WY. 
Thunderstorms produced locally heavy rains in the Yellowstone Park area, causing 15 mudslides.

1990
Hong Kong, China recorded their all-time record high of 97°.

1993
A squall line developed across western Iowa sending damaging winds over the west central portion of the state for a brief time. 
A tornado touched down west of Breda causing extensive damage to a farmstead and minor damage to another. Also, an 80 foot barn was destroyed by the tornado. 
High winds from the storm also overturned a tractor semi-trailer north of Carroll and caused extensive crop damage in the area.

1994
Residents who were in the path of the 1994 Lahoma storm in Oklahoma, awoke on this morning to find a strange world. 
The devastating wind and hail storm on the previous day had stripped nearly every tree of leaves in the Lahoma and Drummond areas. 
That, along with plowed fields from harvested wheat, left the August landscape looking eerily more like mid winter. 
Hail was still on the ground in some protected areas around Lahoma more than 24 hours after the storm.

2004
Powerful thunderstorms brought strong winds, gusting to 50 mph to Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada knocking out power. 
The downtown region reported small hail.

2005
The largest tornado outbreak in Wisconsin history to date occurred, with 27 tornadoes touching down. 
An F3 tornado tore through Stoughton, WI, killing 1 person and injuring 18 others. 
Severe weather wasn't confined to just Wisconsin though, as parts of southeast Minnesota were also affected.
 The severe conditions were the result of an area of low pressure which tracked across southern Wisconsin during the afternoon hours. 
Thunderstorms developed in the early afternoon over southeast Minnesota and shifted into western Wisconsin by mid afternoon. 
At the same time, a warm front moved through southwest Wisconsin providing a favorable wind profile for thunderstorms with tornadoes.
 Locally, a total of seven tornadoes touched down, on or near the following locations: 
Dexter, MN at 12:50 pm, Centerville, WI at 2:18 pm, Esofea, WI at 3:46 pm, Viola, WI from 4:05 to 4:40 pm, Muscoda to Orion, WI from 4:40 to 4:55 pm,
 eastern Monroe County, WI at 4:54 pm, and southwest Adams County, WI at 5:39 pm. The tornadoes were all rated F0-F1 on the Fujita scale. 
Most of the structural damage occurred with the Esofea, Viola, Muscoda to Orion, and the Eastern Monroe County tornadoes. 
There was only one report of minor injuries with the tornadoes, which occurred when a mobile home was destroyed by the Esofea tornado.

2008
Beginning on this date, days of intense rain from Tropical Storm Fay deluged Central Florida.
 13 people died and thousands of homes plus roads were damaged, from 60 mph winds and flooded rivers or tornadoes, as Fay traveled through the entire state.
 Fay was the first storm on record to hit the same U.S. state on four separate occasions, beating a record set by Hurricane Gordon of 1994.
 It was just the third storm on record to hit the U.S. at least 3 times. Fay was also the first storm to prompt storm warnings for the entire coast of Florida. 
The four separate landfalls were responsible for every stretch of the Florida coast to receive a Tropical Storm Watch or Warning, or a Hurricane Watch or Warning. 
The two highest rainfall amounts recorded were 27.65 inches at Windover Farms, 8 miles northwest of Melbourne, FL, and 27.50 inches at Thomasville, GA.

Fay was a fairly prolific tornado-generator in the United States, producing a total of 81tornadoes across five states: 
19 in Florida, 17 in Georgia, 16 in North Carolina, 15 in Alabama, and 14 in South Carolina.
 The overwhelming majority of the tornadoes were categorized as having EF0 intensity.
 A few tornadoes were classified at EF1 to EF2 intensity.

Fay was a long-lived tropical storm that made eight landfalls including a record four landfalls in Florida and produced torrential rainfall
 that caused extensive floods across the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, and Florida.

The amount of total insured damage compiled by the Property Claim Services of the Insurance Services Office, Inc., was $245 million dollars.
 This includes $195 million in Florida, $25 million in Georgia, and $25 million in Alabama. 
Flood damage losses reported by the National Flood Insurance Program were about $36 million dollars.
 Using a doubling of insured losses to obtain the total damage gives an estimate of Fay’s damage in the United States of about $560 million dollars.

Blistering heat pushed the mercury up to an all-time record high of 96.1° at Edmonton International Airport, Alberta Canada.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 19th:

1559
The first hurricane in U.S. recorded history hit Pensacola, FL where five Spanish ships were driven ashore in Pensacola Harbor.

1778
A small but powerful hurricane inflicted great havoc upon forests along a narrow track from the Delaware Bay to Maine. 
A similar storm track today would cause extreme disaster in the now populated areas.

1845
A tornado struck Moneuil, France. The mid-day storm traveled up to 19 miles and was estimated to be as much as 1,000 feet wide. 
As many as 200 people were killed in the destruction of homes and two large mills.

1890
South Wilkes-Barre, PA was hit by an estimated F3 tornado. 400 buildings were destroyed. The death toll was 16 and damage was estimated at $400,000 dollars.

A strong tornado tracked 38 miles across the Jura Mountain region from the French town of Oyonnax to Croy, Switzerland.

1896
The famous Cottage City (Oak Bluffs) waterspout occurred off Martha's Vineyard, MA. 
The vortex was 3,600 feet high, formed three times, and was well photographed.

1906
Bakersfield, CA ended a run of 50 consecutive days with highs of 100 degrees or higher. Their longest such streak.

1935
Bangor, ME soared to 104° for their all-time record high temperature.

1939
Tuckerton registered New Jersey’s maximum 24 hour precipitation record as 14.82 inches of rain fell.

1955
Rains from Tropical Storm Diane fell on already saturated ground from Tropical Storm Connie a week before. 
Westfield, MA recorded 18.15 inches in 24 hours, to set a state record, while the 24-hour precipitation record for CT was set at Burlington with 12.77 inches.
 Extreme flooding occurred in all of New England. Boston, MA received 8.40 inches of rain; their greatest 24 hour total.
 At one point, over 40% of Worcester, MA was underwater. Woonsocket, RI was hit hard as the Blackstone River, normally only 70 feet wide, swelled to over 1.5 miles in width. 
82 people died and damage topped $800 millions dollars.

1960
The heaviest recorded 24-hour precipitation accumulation to date for the Arctic drenched Mould Bay, Northwest Territories Canada with 1.88 inches of rain.

1968
A severe hailstorm in Lambeth, Ontario Canada deposited ice up to 7 inches deep on streets and caused extensive local crop damage.

1969
The remnants of Hurricane Camille deepened rapidly as it moved from Kentucky into Southwestern Virginia, causing record rainfall and devastating flooding along the upper James River. 
107 people died and 55 were missing as the flood became the worst natural disasters in the history of the state. Massies Mill, VA received 27 inches of rain. 
Total damage was $140 million dollars.

1977
Cool air from Canada brought record lows of 37° at Lansing, MI and 43° at Grand Rapids, MI.

1979
Severe weather and very heavy rains were an unwelcome visitor to parts of northeast Nebraska from this date through the 20th. 
Hail up to one inch in diameter damaged crops in a strip from 6 miles south of Pilger, NE through Wisner and Pender affecting Stanton, Thurston and Cuming Counties.
 But probably the most remarkable event occurred in Dixon County where 6 to nearly 10 inches of rain fell in just four hours.
 This rainfall caused the Iowa Creek to exceed its banks causing extensive flash flooding of homes and businesses in Ponca.
 The rushing water washed out crops, tore trees from the creek bed and washed out 15 bridges in the county. 

1986
San Antonio, TX recorded its all-time record high temperature of 108°. This broke their previous record of 107° set on 8/20/1909.

1987
Thunderstorms moving out of southeastern Nebraska spread severe weather into eastern Kansas and western Missouri during the day.
 Thunderstorms in Nebraska produced hail three inches in diameter at Albion, and high winds which downed a large tent at Waterloo injuring a dozen persons.
 Thunderstorms in Kansas produced baseball size hail northwest of Topeka, and wind gusts to 80 mph at Fulton. 
10 people were injured in a thunderstorm at Princeton, KS, and damage to crops in southern Franklin County, Kansas was estimated at $3.5 million dollars.

1988
Raleigh, NC reported a record high temperature reading of 103°. Afternoon thunderstorms in Oklahoma produced wind gusts to 75 mph in southern Pittsburgh County.
 Thunderstorms in Indiana produced 4.50 inches of rain at Morgantown.

1989
Early morning thunderstorms deluged southeastern Delaware with 6 to 10 inches of rain in 4 to 6 hours, with local reports of 13 to 20 inches of rain.
 26 major roads were closed or damaged, and 14 bridges were washed out. Flooding caused nearly $4 million dollars damage to local businesses.

1991
Hurricane Bob made landfall at Newport, RI with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph with gusts to 105 mph.
 Then the cyclone made a final landfall as a tropical storm at Rockland, ME. Winds reached 80 mph gusting 110 mph
 at the New Bedford Hurricane Barrier and gusts reached 143 mph at Westport Point, MA, 125 mph at Block Island, RI, 100 mph at Cape Cod, MA and 93 mph at Blue Hill, ME.
 The storm surge at Upper Buzzards Bay reached 15 feet. 7.84 inches of rain fell in 24 hours at Portland, ME, their wettest 24 hour period on record. 
Power was out to 2.1 million homes and businesses and damage totaled $1.5 billion dollars. 17 people died. Bob was the worst hurricane in the northeast since Hurricane Donna in 1960.

Strong thunderstorms affected portions of north central and east central South Dakota.
 In Dewey County, near Ridgeview, a thunderstorm produced about five inches of rain, very strong winds, and hail.
 The winds blew over three grain bins, one of which struck a house causing considerable damage. 
Skirting was blown from several mobile homes and shingles were torn from many houses.
The storms also produced tremendous amounts of lightning. 
The Civil Defense Director for Codington County reported that the lightning was so frequent and vivid that he drove for 10 minutes without needing his headlights.
 At one point a lightning strike occurred within 10 feet of his car. 
The strike splattered mud onto his vehicle, drained his battery, and caused problems with the car's electrical system.

1992
Tropical Storm Andrew was becoming disorganized as it was being affected by upper level wind shear.

1999
Newspaper front pages would carry dramatic photos of a dust storm engulfing Phoenix, AZ as a severe thunderstorm moved across the city.
 Flights at Sky Harbor International Airport were delayed for several hours because of wind-blown dust clouds that reduced visibility. 
3 people were injured after a downdraft slammed a hot air balloon into the ground.

2003
A sudden cloudburst surprised Las Vegas, NV, dumping 3 inches of rain in just 90 minutes, severely flooding the city's northwest sector, knocking out power to thousands,
 and leaving motorists stranded atop their cars.

2005
An intense thunderstorm struck Toronto, Ontario Canada and surrounding areas bringing torrential rains, quarter to golf-ball sized hail, and flash flooding.
 At Environment Canada's Downsview offices, 5.1 inches of rain fell; 4 inches in less than an hour. 
The storm also dumped 4.06 inches of rain in one hour across a swath of North York and surrounding areas, 
causing flash flooding. During the storm's peak, 1,400 lightning strikes per minute were recorded.
 Severe thunderstorms spawned at least two F2 tornadoes north of the town of Fergus, Ontario Canada. Cars were overturned,
 homes and farm buildings damaged and trees downed, but luckily no injuries are reported. 
The storm leaves in its wake severe damage that, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, is the highest insured loss in the province's history, exceeding $500 million dollars;
 more than two and a half times Ontario's losses during the infamous ice storm of 1998 and the second largest loss event in Canadian history.

2007
Rainfall and flooding of historic proportions struck parts of the Upper Mississippi River Valley continuing into the next day. 
Rainfall in excess of 10 to 12 inches fell in some areas, with the main swath of heaviest rain centered along a line from Claremont and Rochester, MN to La Crosse, Viroqua and Muscoda, WI. 
24 hour rainfall records were set in the following locations: Hokah, MN: 15.10 inches, Viroqua, WI: 9.23 inches, 
La Crescent, MN: 7.95 inches, Gays Mills, WI: 7.41 inches, Westby, WI: 7.17 inches, Genoa, WI: 7.10 inches, Prairie du Chien, WI: 6.52 inches, 
La Farge, WI: 6.14 inches, Spring Grove, MN: 5.65 inches. The Hokah total also set the 24-hour rainfall record for the entire state of Minnesota. 
A warm front extended across northern Iowa and central Illinois on Saturday, and continued to sit there through Sunday.
 A very moist and warm air mass rose up and over this boundary, providing the fuel for showers and thunderstorms. 
Due to the depth of the warm layer, and considerable amount of moisture, the stage was set for heavy rainfall. 
Thunderstorms developed eventually orientating into a west to east moving line from the northern Plains, through southern Minnesota, and then into southwest Wisconsin. 
In addition, due to the training nature of the storms, the heavy rain persisted for hour after hour, with rainfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour common.
 Flood of records were recorded at the Middle Fork Whitewater River at Whitewater State Park, MN: 19.24 feet and the Root River at Houston, MN: 18.75 feet.
 Many other sites had top 5 record crests.

Dozens of waterspouts danced across the waters of Prince Edward Island. Two waterspouts were reported in Westmoreland at 5:35 pm and two more in Argyle Shore about the same time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
August 20th:
1794
The "Battle of Fallen Timbers" took place on the Maumee River in northwestern Ohio at the sight of a windfall from a tornado.
 
1816
The “Year Without a Summer” continued as hard frost occurred in much of New England. Frost was seen as far south as Connecticut.
 
1886
A borderline Category 5 Hurricane with winds estimated at 155 mph and a pressure of 925 millibars or 27.32 inHg stuck the central Texas coast, virtually destroying the town of Indianola.
 The town was never rebuilt.
 
1890
35.53 inches of rain fell in 24 hours at Tanabe, Japan.
 
1904
A destructive, estimated F4 tornado moved east-southeast from 7 miles west-northwest of Willow Lake, SD through the town, 
and on into Bryant, SD. Most of the damaged occurred in those two towns.
 All buildings on at least three farms were blown away. One woman died in Bryant, as the tornado swept across the residential west side of town.
 Another man was killed just west of Willow Lake, as his farm house was scattered for miles.
  
1910
The Big Blowup, a major forest fire outbreak in Idaho and Montana was swept by gale force winds. The towns of Taft, Deborgia, Haugan and Tuscor, MT were destroyed. 
3 million acres burned before early winter rains finally extinguished the fires.
 
1928
A tornado estimated at F4 intensity initially touched down in Winnebago County, Iowa, moved through Freeborn County, Minnesota,
 and hit the south side of Austin, MN. About $600,000 of the million in total loses was to about 100 homes in Austin (estimated F3 damage).
 Five of the 6 deaths were in Austin with 60 injuries. Later in the day, an F3 tornado moved from 3 miles north of New Amsterdam, WI to 2 miles south of West Salem, WI. 
Three farm homes and five barns were destroyed. Many cattle were killed.
 
1939
14.81 inches of rain fell in 24 hours at Tuckerton, NJ establishing the state rainfall record.
 
1950
Canadian high pressure brought record low temperatures for the date. The following locations reported record low temperatures for August: 
 Owen, WI: 28°, Blair, WI: 33°, Cresco, IA 34°, Platteville, WI: 38°, Trempealeau, WI: 40°, Alma, WI: 42°, Quincy, IL: 42° and Lynxville, WI: 44°.
 
Other daily record lows included: Aberdeen, SD: 33°, Sioux Falls, SD: 34°, St. Cloud, MN: 34°, Rochester, MN: 35°, Huron, SD: 38°, Green Bay, WI: 39°,
 Lincoln, NE: 39°, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN: 40°, Grand Island, NE: 40°, Norfolk, NE: 40°, North Platte, NE: 40°, La Crosse, WI: 42°, Moline, IL: 43°, 
Peoria, IL: 43°, Omaha, NE: 43°, Milwaukee, WI: 44°, Rapid City, SD: 45°, Topeka, KS: 45°, Springfield, IL: 46°, Columbia, MO: 46°, Chicago, IL: 47°, 
Dodge City, KS: 47°, Goodland, KS: 47°, Wichita, KS: 47°, Concordia, KS: 48°, Kansas City, MO: 49°, Amarillo, TX: 51°, St. Louis, MO: 52°, Tulsa, OK: 54°, 
Louisville, KY: 54°-Tied, Lexington, KY: 54°-tied and Oklahoma City, OK: 56°.
 
1960
The weakening Super-Typhoon Carmen passed over Okinawa. The storm's eye measured 230 miles in diameter. The largest eye of a tropical storm ever measured.
 
1969
What once was Super Hurricane Camille was now only a tropical depression as it drifted across the Mid Atlantic states during the early morning hours on this date.
 However, deadly forces were still at work as Camille interacted with the jet stream and unloaded a tremendous amount rain over Nelson and adjacent counties in Virginia.
 Some locations had 31 inches of rain in only 6 hours, resulting in extreme flooding that killed 109         people.
 No warning was issued but this would have made little difference since most were asleep as houses were destroyed. 
It was said that the rain was so heavy that birds, which have nostrils on the tops of their beaks, drowned while perched on trees.
 After this event, the total damage from Camille was $1.4 billion dollars.
 
1970
A tornado struck the Sudbury area in Ontario, Canada killing 6 people and injuring 200 others. Damage was estimated at over $10 million dollars.
 
1972
Dust storms in the far southern part of the San Joaquin Valley in California caused two fatal chain reaction accidents. 
One, on Interstate 5 involved 30 vehicles and resulted in four deaths and 80 injuries. The other, 
on Highway 99 south of Bakersfield involved 50 vehicles and resulted in three fatalities and 16 injuries.
 
1979
Major flash flooding occurred at Weirton, WV as 3 inches of rain fell in a short period causing a major portion of the town to be covered under several feet of water.
 
1983
The remnants of Hurricane Alicia brought heavy rain and flooding to parts of southern and central Oklahoma. 
Rainfall of 4 to 6 inches in less than 6 hours occurred in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, the hardest hit part of the state.
 Major flooding occurred west of El Reno, while high water crept into a few buildings at the University of Oklahoma campus in Norman.
 
1987
Several cities in the Central Plains Region reported record high temperatures for the date, including Hill City, KS with 106°, 
Goodland, KS with 104°and Pueblo, CO with 102°.
 
1988
More than 150,000 acres were consumed during one of many fires in Yellowstone Park, Wyoming. 
This was the single worst day of the fires and was later dubbed Black Saturday. 
More Yellowstone land burned on this day, than all other fires combined since the establishment of the park in 1872. 
Ash from the fires drifted as far away as Billings, MT.
 
Sheridan, WY reported a record high temperature of 100°.
 
Evening thunderstorms produced golf ball size hail near Fortuna, ND, and wind gusts to 70 mph near Webster, SD.
 
1989
Early morning thunderstorms produced heavy rain in southeast Kansas and northeastern Oklahoma, with up to 6 inches reported around Tulsa, OK.
 Some roads in the Tulsa area were closed by water 10 to 12 feet deep. Evening thunderstorms produced severe weather in northern Oklahoma and southern Kansas. 
Thunderstorms produced winds gusts to 75 mph in Major County, Oklahoma, and hail 2 inches in diameter at Jennings, KS.
 
1990
The temperature at Houston Intercontinental Airport reached 105° to set a new daily record. It was the hottest reading since 1980. 
Only three times in recorded history has the temperature at Houston been higher than 105°, including twice in 1980 and once in 1962.
 Houston's all time record high was recorded on 8/23/1980, when the mercury reached 107°.
 
1992
Tropical Storm Andrew continued his struggle to maintain himself near 22N/63W as strong upper level winds from a cold upper low to its north sheared the convection.  
Despite Andrew's broad, poorly organized center with a lowest sea level pressure of only 1015 millibars or 29.97 inHg, 
an Air Force reconnaissance plane still found sustained 80 mph winds at the 1500 foot level in the northeastern quadrant of the storm.
 Andrew managed to hold his own and once the wind shear abated late on the 21st,
 the storm began a rapid intensification curve and eventually became a strong category five hurricane that went on to devastate south Florida 
as a massive high pressure area built to Andrew's north and steered him westward.
 
Temperatures fall into the 30s in some rural areas in Michigan during the coldest August on record at Grand Rapids. 
Record lows for the day include 42° at Muskegon, MI and 43° at Grand Rapids, MI.
 
1994
El Paso, TX hit 100° for the 56th time this year. This set a new record for days 100 degrees or above in a single year for the city. 
The old record was 55 days set back in 1980.
 
1996
Parts of eastern Salt Lake City, UT were inundated by up to 2 feet of water as heavy rain in the nearby Wasatch Mountains caused flash flooding.
 
1997
One of the worst floods in history for parts of southern New Jersey occurred as heavy thunderstorms dumped torrential rain from Delaware into southeastern New Jersey.
 11.12 inches of rain at Atlantic City, NJ shattered their record precipitation for the date and for any single date. 
The rains brought the total for the month to 15.74 inches which broke the old monthly record set in 1967. 
At the marina in Atlantic City, just 10 miles from the airport, only 2.60 inches fell. 3.17 inches of rain fell in one hour at the airport. 
The airport and almost every road in the area were closed.
 
The remnants of Tropical Storm Ignacio produced some unusually heavy rain for the time of year in San Francisco, CA; 0.73 inches of rain fell, making this the second wettest August day ever.
 
2002 
Southern Turkey is normally very dry in the summer as the town of Mugla in southwestern Turkey receives as an average of 0.32 inches.
 However in just 3 hours, 1.02 inches of rain fell during a thunderstorm.
 
2003
Thunderstorms developed in the mountains and desert of southern California dropping three inches of rain at Yucca Valley,
 2.63 inches of rain in one hour and seven minutes in San Felipe Valley and 1.92 inches in two hours at Ocotillo Wells. Flash flooding damaged five homes.
 Three people lost their lives and two swift water rescues were made in Twentynine Palms.
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------