Drier than normal March as drought conditions worsen

ORLANDO, Fla. – With a strong La Nina in place to start 2021, it’s no surprise that March is the third consecutive month to run warmer and drier than usual.

For March, many areas across Central Florida dealt with temperatures above normal for more than 50% of the month. This pushed two reporting sites into the top 10 warmest on record for the month of March.

March 2021 Temperature Ranking:

• Orlando: 70.6 degrees (+3.4 above average) 8th warmest
• Daytona Beach: 67.2 degrees (+2.9 above average) 18th warmest
• Melbourne: 69.4 degrees (+3.6 above average) 20th warmest
• Sanford: 69.3 degrees (+2.9 above average) 9th warmest

Drought conditions worsened as Central Florida continues through dry season. On average, we should be able to rack up about 4 inches of rainfall during March. Unfortunately, the area only collected about half an inch or less for many zones.

This lack of rain moved most of Central Florida into the top ten driest March on record.

March 2021 Rainfall Ranking:

• Orlando: 0.55 inches (-3.1 below average) 9th driest
• Daytona Beach: 0.57 inches (-3.5 below average) 7th driest
• Melbourne: 0.29 inches (-2.9 below average) 5th driest
• Sanford: 0.64 inches (-3.2 below average) 8th driest