If your family hasn’t picked their costumes yet, it might be best to decide on something light. October 31 will be the hottest weather on record since 1946, just one of two Halloweens to eclipse 80 degrees in the Delaware Valley since records started being kept in the 19th century.
A Drought in the Western Suburbs
Philadelphia and its suburbs are in the midst of one of the most intense droughts since the turn of the millennium. The U.S. Drought Monitor (a parent of the National Weather Service), runs a five-tiered scale for measuring droughts from none to D0 up to D4.
The entire western suburbs region falls, at minimum, in the D1 (moderate drought) range, while our coverage area in both Montgomery and Chester Counties falls in the D2 (severe drought) range. Most of Delaware County is in moderate drought, but some northern Delco towns like Wayne and Villanova are experiencing severe drought.
Due to low cloud cover and cold fronts brought on by rain and stormy weather, October 2024 has set a litany of weather records in the Delaware Valley for heat and minimal precipitation. Likewise, fall foliage season has progressed much faster than in past years, with trees and grasses turning yellow and then brown faster than ever.
What Will the Weather Be Like on Halloween?
“Trick-or-treaters will be seeing scarecrow-like grass as they go from house to house,” FOX29 meteorologist Drew Anderson notes. “You’ll be sweating in your costumes because temperatures will be in the 70s for all of trick or treating.”
Make sure you and your children, especially those heavy costumes, are hydrating throughout the evening. All the excitement and adrenaline could cause kids to heat up even faster than usual.
Homeowners with brown yards and dying plants shouldn’t be fretting just yet though. Some respite from the drought weather is coming Halloween night and into the morning of November 1. The Delaware Valley should get a treat when scattered showers roll in late that evening and just before sunrise.
“It’s not a soaker like people have been wishing for, ” Anderson says, but adds that this light rain will pass through with a cold front that should knock temperatures down this weekend.
To learn more about the U.S. Drought Monitor and the drought scale, click here.
Related: 9 Annual Events Worth Checking out Across the Main Line Region
