Parched July fifth hottest ever

July 2017 in the Flathead Valley will go into the record book as the fifth-hottest and fifth-driest July since record-keeping began, the National Weather Service said.

“I’d say half the month was above 90 degrees,” National Weather Service meteorologist Ray Nickless said.

The Kalispell area saw consecutive days above 90 degrees from July 5 through July 9, and toward the end of the month, from July 26 through July 31. Several other days topped 90 during July as well.

Two records were broken in the Flathead. The high temperature of 96 on July 8 broke the 1964 record of 94; and on July 9 the record high of 96 tied for the 1985 record of 96 degrees.

The year 2007 was the hottest year on record for the Kalispell area, Nickless said.

“It was so brutal,” he recalled, noting Missoula’s high of 107 that summer.

While heat has been plentiful, moisture was almost non-existent in July. The Flathead ended the month with just 0.07 inches of rain. The driest year on record here was 1953, with 0.02 inches of rain. Other record-breaking dry years were 1959, 1960 and 1972.

“In recent memory 2003 was really dry, too,” Nickless added. That was a particularly bad fire year in Northwest Montana.

A high-pressure system that has been dominating the West this year has led to monsoonal moisture in the Southwest,” but unfortunately that precipitation has a hard time making it to Montana,” Nickless said.

A couple of low-pressure systems in Canada are poised to break the Flathead’s grip on 90-plus days. Cooler air is pushing into the Flathead, bringing slightly cooler temperatures in the 80s, but little to no moisture.