Dry August puts brakes on Pittsburgh's record rainfall pace

One of the wettest three-month stretches of weather in Pittsburgh gave way to one of the driest summer months it’s seen in years.

The National Weather Service in Moon has recorded 2.45 inches of rain in August, more than an inch short of the 30-year August average of 3.48 inches.

And with just a small percentage chance of precipitation in the forecast for the final days of the month, that number should hold.

Through July, Pittsburgh was on pace to set an annual rainfall record, which it set at 57.83 inches in 2018.

The 2.45 inches this August make it the second-driest month in Pittsburgh since December 2017 (1.77 inches). Only March 2019 was drier, with 2.37 inches. It’s the driest meteorological summer month (June-August) since August 2015 (2.29 inches).

The region was drenched with over 19 inches of rain in May, June and July, making it the most saturating three-month stretch recorded at Pittsburgh International Airport since July-September 2004. Pittsburgh already had seen a combined 11.8 inches of rain in July and August of that year, and in September, Hurricane Ivan wreaked havoc on the region, contributing to a total of more than 10 inches of rain that month alone.

At its current monthly average, Pittsburgh is on pace for 51.84 inches of rain in 2019. While that would put it 6 inches behind last year’s record, it would still be Pittsburgh’s second-wettest year since 2004.