The Hottest June Ever Recorded in New York Was Like a Permanent Sauna

New York is a Mid-Atlantic state with warm summers and cold winters. Typically, summer does not start with extreme heat. However, that is not always the case. During one particular June, New York baked in the heat during what would become the hottest summer on record in the state. Discover the hottest June ever recorded in New York! See the hottest day recorded in June for that year and the impact that the month had on the people living in the area.

New York’s Typical Climate

The majority of New York has a warm humid continental climate, but the area around New York City and Long Island are both humid subtropical climates. So, the majority of the state has warm-to-hot summers and cool-to-cold winters, but the southeastern part of the state has milder winters and hot, humid summers.

This state is known for having four distinct seasons. The month of June has late spring and early summer. Warm to hot weather in the month is common, but it is rarely long-lasting.

The state is not usually too hot in June. The average high temperature in June for Central Park from 1991 to 2020 was just 79.7 degrees Fahrenheit, and the daily mean is only 72 degrees Fahrenheit.

When Was the Hottest June Ever Recorded in New York

The hottest June ever recorded in New York was June 2010, when the state had 12 days with a high temperature over 90 °F. The hottest day recorded that month was June 28, 2010, and the high temperature for that day reached 96 °F.

According to the National Weather Service, June 2010 featured two heatwaves. The first one occurred between June 3 and June 6, with three days of 90 °F weather and ended on a day with 93 °F. The second heatwave was far more potent and included the hottest day of the month.

The second heatwave took place between June 23 and June 29, a total of 7 days over 90 °F. The temperatures during that week are below.

June 2010 did not have the highest temperatures ever to strike New York. The consistency of the weather was what made it the hottest June on record. Back in 1934 and 1966, the temperature reached 101 °F in New York in June. Neither of those years had such prolonged heatwaves during June, though.

Another indication of how hot the temperatures were in the state is that the average high temperature was over three degrees higher than normal. Typically, the average high temperature in the state is 81.1 °F, but it reached 84.3 °F in June 2010.

How the Heat Affected People in New York in 2010

Summer 2010 had a significant impact on the people living in New York. According to the Summary of Vital Statistics for New York City, at least 9 people died in New York City as a result of excessive heat. None of the days in June 2010 reached over 100 °F, so the heat didn’t pose an exceptional danger to people. The majority of the deaths probably happened in the hotter months of the summer.

June was not the only hot month that summer. July 2010 was another brutally hot month with an early heat wave strike starting on July 3 and ending on July 8. The heatwave featured temperatures as high as 103 °F. The heatwave occurred when a high-pressure system off the East Coast brought up the hot air from the south and stalled in the area.

During the summer months of 2010, New York City responded by opening pools and cooling centers for the public while also encouraging people in the area to stay safe during the extreme heat.

Overall, 17 days in July 2010 were over 90 °F, and the average high temperature was over four degrees higher throughout the month. August’s average high temperatures were close to the average but consistently brought heat to the area. All told, the National Weather Services recorded 37 days of 90 °F weather during the Summer of 2010, a record that still stands.

Infrastructure and Future Preparedness

The heatwaves in June 2010 were unusual but not entirely unanticipated. No widespread power outages were reported throughout New York City, the place most likely to experience them due to the population density and power demands.

However, the city did draw an unusually high amount of power during July 2010. On July 6, 2010, New York City alone consumed a sustained 13,141 megawatts of electricity, much more than usual.

Fortunately, the city’s infrastructure has been bolstered in the ensuing years. For 2022, a press release reported that electricity supplies in New York State exceed 41,000 megawatts for the entire state. That is more than the estimated peak demand of 35,436 MW in the state.

So, New York has taken great pains to ensure that the peak electrical demands are met. The city has suffered blackouts before, but blackouts caused by electrical demand in June are either exceptionally rare or non-existent.

Crop Production Stalls During the Hottest June in New York

The hottest June ever recorded in New York did have widespread negative outcomes for crops productions. Both corn and soybean production in the U.S. declined during 2010, a symptom of the incredibly hot, dry summer that occurred in large swaths of the country. These crop losses were not devastating, but they showed how a warming climate could impact food supplies around the world.

The hottest June ever recorded in New York was consistently hot. However, it was not dangerously hot like the July that followed it. The state’s infrastructure was not challenged in June, but people were uncomfortable because of how early the hot weather arrived in the year. The summer in 2010 was hotter than any other on record, and it showed why the city needed to improve its power grid to meet the demands of the state moving forward.