Heat, Frederick
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Frederick forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.472, -77.398 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heat in Maryland, June 25 to 26, 2002
Very warm and moist air was ushered into the region by south winds during the last week of June. On the 25th and 26th, temperatures in the mid 90s combined with dew points near 70 to create heat index values between 100 and 110 degrees.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 6 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 6
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 9
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 LWX wrote it up.
Very warm and moist air was ushered into the region by south winds during the last week of June. On the 25th and 26th, temperatures in the mid 90s combined with dew points near 70 to create heat index values between 100 and 110 degrees. A handful of people who were in non-air-conditioned environments, especially in downtown Baltimore, died from complications of prolonged exposure to the heat. Temperatures remained in the lower 90s through the end of the month which also led to additional heat-related deaths and illnesses. In Montgomery County, a 33 year-old woman with multiple sclerosis died in her Aspen Hill home on Tuesday the 25th. She was found on Wednesday the 26th and the temperature measured in the house was more than 90 degrees due the lack of air conditioning. In Baltimore County, a 37 year-old man died on the 27th after being exposed to excessive heat. In the city of Baltimore, a 52 year-old man and an 82 year-old man were found dead in their homes on the 27th . On the 30th, a 67 year-old woman was found dead in her home. In the Carroll County community of Westminister, a 69-year old male was out walking on the 29th and was overcome by heat. He was found not breathing near a shopping center along Route 140 and died a short time later at an area hospital. Each person had underlying health conditions that contributed to their deaths. In Anne Arundel County, two people were treated at area hospitals for dehydration and heat exhaustion on the 26th.
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 Baltimore/Washington wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 25, 2:10 AM EST, 7 hours 50 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jun 25, 2:10 AM EST, 7 hours 50 minutes before
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
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
9 heat. Local standard time, as filed.
Heat, Montgomery
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Montgomery forecast zone
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- GOVT OFFICIAL
Heat, Carroll
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Carroll forecast zone
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- GOVT OFFICIAL
- Coordinates
- 39.563, -77.022 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heat, Howard
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Howard forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Heat, Northern Baltimore
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Northern Baltimore forecast zone
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 39.443, -76.616 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heat, Southern Baltimore
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Southern Baltimore forecast zone
- Deaths
- 3 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- GOVT OFFICIAL
- Coordinates
- 39.367, -76.614 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heat, Harford
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Harford forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Heat, Anne Arundel
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Anne Arundel forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 38.994, -76.568 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Heat, Prince Georges
- When
- June 25, 10:00 AM EST to June 26, 8:00 PM EST
- Where
- Prince Georges forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 38.830, -76.847 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heat, Montgomery | 2002-06-25 | 33 | Female | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Heat, Carroll | 2002-06-29 | 69 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
| Heat, Northern Baltimore | 2002-06-27 | 37 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
| Heat, Southern Baltimore | 2002-06-27 | 82 | Male | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Heat, Southern Baltimore | 2002-06-30 | 67 | Female | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Heat, Southern Baltimore | 2002-06-27 | 52 | Male | Permanent Home | Direct |
What these are
- Heat
- Heat below excessive heat criteria that still caused deaths, injuries or significant impacts.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Heat in Missouri, June 25, 2002
- Tornadoes and Hail in Minnesota, June 25, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Wisconsin, June 25, 2002
- Tornado and Damaging Winds in Wisconsin, June 25, 2002
- Flooding and Hail in Ohio, June 25, 2002
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Nebraska, June 25, 2002
- Tornado and Hail in Minnesota, June 25, 2002
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, June 25, 2002
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in New York, June 25, 2002
- Lightning Strike in Alabama, June 25, 2002
- Damaging Wind in Tennessee, June 25, 2002
- Flash Flood and Damaging Wind in Indiana, June 25, 2002
More
Every storm in Maryland in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Maryland, June 2002
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: 5302402, 5302403, 5302404, 5302405, 5302406, 5302407, 5302408, 5302409, 5302410.