Today's High Temperature Topped 90 Degrees for the Fifth Time in Eight Days

Sunday's high and low temperatures at the Bridgeport climate station were 90° F (5:16 p.m. EDT) and 71° (3:24 a.m.), respectively, for a 81° average, which is 7° warmer-than-normal. It marked the fifth time in the last eight days the temperature climbed to 90° or higher.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 30, 2025 at 6:47 AM

Paul

Fourth Straight Record High Temperature is the Warmest of the Year at Bridgeport Climate Station

Today's high temperature of 97° F (2:59 p.m. EDT) at the Bridgeport climate station is the warmest temperature of the year and broke the previous record high of 94° for this date, which was set in 1952. Records for the Bridgeport climate station date back to 1948.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 25, 2025 at 3:55 PM

Paul

Heat Advisory in Effect for Today Across Southwestern Connecticut

A Heat Advisory will be in effect for Fairfield and New Haven counties from Tuesday at 8 p.m. until Wednesday at 7 p.m. EDT: forecast.weather.gov/showsigwx.ph...

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 24, 2025 at 3:43 PM

Paul

Violent Thunderstorm & Tornado Ripped Though Bridgeport 15 Years Ago Today

It only took a matter of minutes, but a violent thunderstorm spawned a tornado which ripped through Bridgeport 15 years ago today, Thursday, June 24, 2010, resulting in much damage, destruction, and a loss of electricity for thousands. A powerful cold front collided with a hot and humid air mass to set the stage for a Tornado Warning and a strong thunderstorm cell between 2 and 3 o'clock that afternoon.

The temperature soared to 90 degrees for the second day in a row at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford that day, but the dew point --- or moisture content in the atmosphere --- was extremely high. As the front approached, the sky darkened, the heavens opened up, and vivid lightning along with hurricane-force wind gusts ripped through the Park City. Here is a photo of Washington Park in Bridgeport taken by one of our viewers, Melissa, following the storm.

There was dangerous cloud-to-ground lightning and a wind gust of 78 miles-an-hour in Bridgeport. The average wind speed during the height of the storm was 43 miles-an-hour. Nearly a half-inch of rain fell in a short period of time, resulting in some minor flooding of low-lying areas. But, it was the wind damage which caused a state of emergency to be declared in Bridgeport. Take a look at this picture of a fallen tree in the Park City taken by Takina.

Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch and former Governor Jodi Rell arrived on the scene to survey the damage from the storm. "It looks like Godzilla went through and ripped roofs off and threw cars around and tore wires down," Finch said as he spoke with reporters and residents who had gathered in the streets. "I mean, it's really amazing," he added. Shelley sent two photos of the damage on East Main Street.

Bethany sent the following photo of downtown Bridgeport.

Personally, my family and I ran to the basement that afternoon once we heard a Tornado Warning was issued and the skies darkened. In a matter of minutes, the wind began to howl and heavy rain fell. My sons were worried that a tornado would rip apart our home. Not unexpectedly, the power went out, but the storm exited shortly thereafter. We didn't get our electricity back until just before midnight. Here's one more photo taken by Amanda of minor flooding on James Street in Bridgeport.

Paul

Record High Temperature of 95 Degrees Established Today at Bridgeport Punctuates Season's First Heat Wave

It's officially a heat wave. Today's high temperature of 95° F (2:26 p.m. EDT) at the Bridgeport climate station broke the previous record high of 94° for this date, which was set in 1966. Records for the Bridgeport climate station date back to 1948.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM

Paul

Record High Temperature of 94 Degrees Established Today at Bridgeport

Today's high temperature of 94° F (2:20 p.m. EDT) at the Bridgeport climate station broke the previous record high of 91° for this date, which was set in 2010. Records for the Bridgeport climate station date back to 1948.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 23, 2025 at 5:01 PM

Paul

Record High Temperature of 93 Degrees Tied Today at Bridgeport

Today's high temperature of 93° F (2:59 p.m. EDT) at the Bridgeport climate station tied the record high for this date, which was set in 1949. Records for the Bridgeport climate station date back to 1948.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 22, 2025 at 4:46 PM

Paul

Extreme Heat Watch from Sunday Through Tuesday Across Connecticut

An Extreme Heat Watch will be in effect for Fairfield and New Haven counties from Sunday at 12 p.m. until Tuesday at 8 p.m. EDT: forecast.weather.gov/showsigwx.ph...

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 20, 2025 at 5:15 PM

Paul

Severe Thunderstorms Possible Thursday Across Southwestern Connecticut

NOAA's Storm Prediction Center is forecasting a "slight" risk (level two) for severe thunderstorms Thursday across southwestern Connecticut.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 18, 2025 at 6:34 AM

Paul

Summer Solstice Happens Friday, June 21, at 10:41 p.m. EDT

Ask any child when Summer begins, and he or she will undoubtedly respond with the date of the last day of school. Ask an adult and his or her answer is most likely either June 20 or June 21. In case you're wondering, the Summer Solstice happens this Friday, June 20, at 10:41 p.m. EDT.

That’s when the Sun’s rays will be directly over the Tropic of Cancer, marking their northernmost point on the face of the Earth. The Sun rises at 5:19 a.m. and sets at 8:30 p.m., which is the latest Sunset during the year. We’ll enjoy 15 hours and 11 minutes of Sunlight on the first day of Summer.

Two days later, the Sun rises at 5:20, and the days begin to get “shorter” once again. Remember, since the first day of Summer is theoretically “the longest day” of the year, the days actually become shorter by the end of the month and the remainder of the Summer.

So, why does the Summer Solstice actually happen? Well, the seasons of the year are caused by the 23.5 degree tilt of the Earth’s axis. Because the Earth rotates like a gyroscope, the North Pole points in a fixed position constantly, while the Earth is revolving around the Sun. 

During one half of the year, the Northern Hemisphere has more exposure to the Sun than the Southern Hemisphere, while the reverse is true during the other half of the year. At noontime, the Sun appears high in the sky during Summertime, and when the Sun reaches its maximum elevation, or angle, in the sky, that’s when the Summer Solstice happens.

Summer was a joyous time of the year in prehistoric times for the Aboriginal people who lived in the Northern latitudes. The snow had melted, the ground thawed out, and warm temperatures returned. Flowers were in full bloom, and leaves had returned to the trees. More important, food was easier to find, and crops had been planted and would be harvested for months to come. The Full Moon is June is called the Full Honey Moon. Tradition dictates that this is the best time to harvest honey from the hives.

This time of the year, between the planting and harvesting of crops, is the traditional time for weddings because many ancient peoples believed that the grand union of the goddess and god occurred in early May. Since it was unlucky to compete with the gods, many people delayed their weddings until June. Today, June remains a favorite month for marriage.

Native Americans have constructed many stone structures linked to the Equinoxes and Solstices. Many are still standing today. One of them is called Calendar One. It is a natural amphitheater of about 20 acres in size in Vermont. From a stone enclosure in the center of the bowl, one can see a number of vertical rocks and other markers around the edge of the bowl. “At the Summer Solstice, the Sun rose at the southern peak of the East ridge and set at a notch at the southern end of the West ridge.” The Winter Solstice and both equinoxes were similarly marked.

I’d love to be at Calendar One on the first day of Summer. The start of each of the four seasons carries more significance to this writer than New Year’s Day, which, in essence, is an arbitrary date on the calendar. The start of Summer is just a few days away, and that is reason to celebrate in the Northern Hemisphere.

Paul 

Dry June Across Southwestern Connecticut

The Bridgeport climate station has recorded less than one-half inch (0.40") of rain this month, which is well below the 1.94" normal through yesterday. Only two days this month have featured measured rain.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 15, 2025 at 1:15 PM

Paul

Showers to Christen Start of Father's Day Weekend

Approximately one-third of an inch of precipitation is expected across southwestern Connecticut through Saturday at 8 p.m. EDT.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 13, 2025 at 7:17 AM

Paul

Another Hot Day Across Southwestern Connecticut

06/12/2025 @ 10:15 a.m. EDT: The heat is on. The air temperature is 82° F with a 63° dew point and a generous southwest breeze under a sunny sky at Samp Mortar Lake in Fairfield.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 12, 2025 at 9:16 AM

Paul

June's Full Strawberry Moon Happens Early Tomorrow

June's Full Strawberry Moon happens tomorrow, Wednesday, June 11, at 3:44 a.m. EDT. The name was universal to every Algonquin tribe. However, in Europe they called it the Rose Moon. The relatively short season for harvesting strawberries comes each year during the month of June, so the Full Moon that occurs during this month was christened for the strawberry!

                            

The June Full Moon is also called a Honey Moon in the Northern Hemisphere, possibly because it never gets very high in the sky. When we gaze toward the Full Moon tonight, we are seeing it through more of the Earth’s atmosphere than when the Moon is overhead. The atmosphere reddens its color.

The Full Moon is especially low in the Northern Hemisphere because it occurs a few days before the Summer Solstice. The Full Moon is opposite the Sun in the sky. Therefore, when the Sun is higher in the Summer sky, the Full Moon is lower. Every Full Moon stands more or less opposite the Sun in our sky. That’s why the Moon looks full.

The Moon will rise around sunset, climb to its highest point around midnight, and set close to sunrise. As seen from both the Northern and Southern hemispheres, the Moon – like the December Solstice Sun – will rise far South of due East and set far South of due West.

North of the Arctic Circle, the Full Moon – like the Winter Sun – will be too far South to climb above the horizon. Meanwhile, in the Southern Hemisphere – where it’s Winter now – the Full Moon will mimic the Summer Sun, arcing high in the heavens. South of the Antarctic Circle, the Moon will simulate the midnight Sun – up all hours around the clock.

Paul

Record High Temperature Established at Bridgeport

A record high temperature of 87° F was established at the Bridgeport climate station today (2:52 p.m. EDT). That broke the previous record high of 86° F in 1953 and 2001. The normal high temperature for June 5 is 74° F.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 5, 2025 at 6:21 PM

Paul

May Slightly Warmer & Wetter Than Normal Across Southwestern Connecticut

The average temperature for May at the Bridgeport climate station was 60.2° F, which is 0.2° warmer-than-normal. The range was 76° (May 11 & 18) and 47° (May 22 & 23).

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 1, 2025 at 7:32 AM

The Bridgeport climate station recorded 4.15" of precipitation for May, which is 0.57" above normal. Thirteen of 30 days (43%) featured measured rain.

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— Paul Piorek WICC (@paulpiorekwicc.bsky.social) June 1, 2025 at 7:34 AM

Paul