It’s official – torrential August summed up a cruel summer
GUERNSEY MET has confirmed what we all were thinking... it’s been a cruel summer, especially in August.
The month was bookended by torrential rain on the first and last days – Tuesday 1 August was the wettest day seen in Guernsey since October 2020, and the wettest August day for 30 years, with more than 40mm of rainfall. The last day of the month saw another 14mm.
Towards the end of that first dull week of August, Storm Antoni swept in, ramping up winds to force six from the west, gusting to close to 50mph, though Storm Betty largely missed the island two weeks later, with just 0.2mm of rain recorded.
Temperatures in August peaked at only 22.9C on Thursday 10 August. However, average temperatures were similar to the long-term picture, as the evenings tended to stay warm.
It was the dullest August experienced in eight years, with just less than six hours of sunshine a day.
Summer started off well with sunshine and below average rainfall, and the warmest June since 1976. July was still warm, and drier than August. but less sunny than average.
The mean temperature across the period was 17C, the ninth-warmest summer since 1843, and despite the August performance, rainfall across the three-month period was slightly below average.
Some families were on the beach at Vazon yesterday making the most of the final chance to soak up rays before the restart of school.
‘The summer has felt much shorter this year,’ said Steve Sarre, on a break from his responsibilities as Lihou Island warden.
‘My son Alfie goes back to school tomorrow, he’s starting year one, and the weather has only just started improving.
‘The weather has definitely affected how much we have been to the beach this year.’
Poor weather has not been reflected in the water, where, although sea temperatures have dipped over the past couple of weeks from a high of 18.1C, they have consistently been more than a degree ahead of the 40-year average.
‘It’s warmer now than it was at the start of the summer, which started much colder,’ said Guernsey Surf School instructor Sam Davidson, hosting one of his last lessons of the holidays at Vazon.
‘The maximum sea temperatures are in October, so we aren’t at our highest point yet. It’s definitely warmer than it was at the start of summer, I surf all year round so really feel when the temperature shifts.’
