Excessive Heat in Massachusetts, April 24, 2001

Name: Excessive Heat in Massachusetts, April 24, 2001
Start: 2001-04-24T00:00
End: 2001-04-24T23:59
Location: Massachusetts

April 24, 2001 · NWS BOX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

The high temperature of 80 degrees at Worcester Regional Airport (which occurred around 1 pm) broke the previous record high for the date, which was 79 degrees set in 1942.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS BOX wrote it up.

The high temperature of 80 degrees at Worcester Regional Airport (which occurred around 1 pm) broke the previous record high for the date, which was 79 degrees set in 1942.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Boston/Norton, MA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 23, 8:00 PM EST, 4 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 23, 8:00 PM EST, 4 hours before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
900 PM EDT MON APR 23 2001

DISC:  SAT PIX SHOW PLENTY OF HI CLDS SPILLING INTO FA ATTM...BUT
PTCLDY SHUD WORK OVRNGT AS MUCH OF IT IS THIN.  CUD ALSO SEE SOME
PTCHY LO CLDS DVLPG ALG COAST...WHERE WL ALSO KEEP MNTN OF PTCHY FG
BUT NOT CONFIDENT IT WL BE TOO WDSPRD.

18Z AVN/ETA HAVE COME IN WARMER THAN 12Z RUNS FOR MAX TMPS TUE...BUT
PREFER TO KEEP CURRENT FCST OF MID-UPR 80S THRUT FA.  MAX TMP RECORDS
APPEAR TO BE IN JEOPARDY INCLDG BOS WHICH DATES BACK TO 1885! (SEE
BLO).  SW WND SHUD GET CRANKING DURG AFTN/EVE WITH CDFNT PSG.  ETA
SOUNDGS SHOW HIEST POTL 18Z-22Z AND AGAIN 01Z-04Z. DESPITE A DEEP MXD
LYR THERE IS ENUF OF A WEAK INVRSN TO PREVENT STGST WNDS FM REACHING
SFC...BUT GUSTS TO 45 MPH ARE STILL LKLY OUTSIDE OF MARINE INFLUENCE.
WL NOT ISSUE A WND ADVY ATTM (SPCLY DUE TO LATE 2ND PD OCCURRENCE)
AND LET NXT SHIFT GET A LOOK AT NEW GUID.

ETA IS SHOWG A BIT MORE PCPN THAN ERLR RUNS...BUT NOT LOOKING FOR
WDSPRD CNVCTN IN SRN NEW ENG.  BEST DYNAMICS REMAIN N OF FA...WHILE
GRTST INSTABY STAYS WELL TO S ACRS MIDATLC.  STILL WE DO XPCT TO SEE
SOME SCTD CNVTCN PRIMARILY ACRS INTERIOR.  LL SW FLO SHUD SQUASH ANY
ACTVTY AS IT REACHES XTRM SE ZNS.

MARINE:  NO CHGS PLANNED.

HYDRO:  PLANNING ON CONTG WARNINGS/WATCHES AS THEY ARE.  STILL TO
ERLY TO CONVERT TO WARNINGS AT N WALPOLE WHICH IS NOT XPCTD TO REACH
FS TIL ERLY WED MRNG...AND AT HOLYOKE WHICH MAY NOT REACH FS TIL WED
AFTN OR EVE.  ALL FCST PTS INCLDED IN WRNGS ARE NOW IN FLOOD...AND
APPEAR TO BE TRACKING VERY CLOSE TO AFTN NERFC FCST.  WL HOLD FLS
TIL NEW RFC FCST ARRIVES.

FYI: RECORDS FOR 4/24
     BOS 82-1885
     BDL 82-1994
     PVD 77-1982
     ORH 79-1942

.BOX...RIVER FLOOD WRNG CT RVR MONTAGUE-NORTHAMPTON AND
        THOMPSONVILLE TO MIDDLETOWN.
       RIVER FLOOD WATCH CT RVR NORTH WALPOLE AND HOLYOKE.
       SCRA LIKELY TUE FOR ALL WATERS...ESP E MA WATERS.

JWD

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 excessive heat. Local standard time, as filed.

Excessive Heat, Southern Worcester

When: April 24, 12:00 AM EST to 11:59 PM EST
Where: Southern Worcester forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates: 42.351, -71.908 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Worcester Regional Airport

What these are

Excessive Heat: Heat at or above the local excessive heat warning criteria, or heat that caused deaths.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Massachusetts in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Massachusetts, April 2001

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5237980.