Hottest Xmas 2015 On Record In Parts Of The USA

It was the hottest Christmas since records began for swathes of the east coast yesterday – and the unseasonably balmy weather is set to continue with temperatures as high as 86F expected in Florida on Saturday.

 

The Midwest and the South are also forecast soaring heat – with temperatures forecast to hit the 80s in Georgia, South Carolina and Texas this weekend – albeit with a chance of lightning storms.

 

The combination of record-setting temperatures and gnarly waves had New York City surfers hitting summertime surf spot Rockaway Beach on Christmas morning – and it will still be a relatively mild 52F in Manhattan on Saturday. 

 

With temperatures nearing the 60s, some surfers were wearing thinner-than-usual wetsuits without customary winter hoods and gloves on Christmas Day as they enjoyed the best of Christmas presents: nearly 5-foot waves breaking just so into the Queens shore.

Parts of Florida and the South and Midwest are forecast temperatures of up to 86F on Saturday as the hot weather rumbles on

Christmas temperatures soared this year as the freakishly balmy weather continued in the east of America.

 

New York City broke records with Christmas Eve temperatures in the 70s on Thursday, and just after Midnight, another warm-weather record was broken with a temperature of 66 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.  

 

Records are also set to be broken in the South and the Midwest, with the mercury set to soar to unprecedented levels for this time of year.

 

‘Santa gave us waves this year,’ said Ryan De La Cruz, 31, of Manhattan, as he bounded into the water in Queens just after dawn with his surfer pal Matt Muro. ‘But I have to be done before my girlfriend gets up to open presents.’

 

The National Weather Service said Friday was the city’s warmest Christmas ever recorded, breaking the previous record from 1982. 

 

And the unseasonably warm weather makes it less jarring to duck dive into oncoming waves and linger longer in the Atlantic waiting for the perfect swell, said Mike Reinhardt, owner of Locals Surf School.

 

‘It’s ungodly warm out there,’ said Reinhardt, 26, after taking a break from the action, his winter hood pulled down. ‘I’m overheating.’

 

Water temperatures measured in the low 50s on Friday, cold enough to warrant full wetsuits and boots, but not as cold as previous years.

 

Avid surfers paddle into Rockaway waters year-round, braving frigid temperatures and freezing wind chill to catch good waves.

Just days after a blizzard smacked the Northeast last January, surfers walked along the snow-caked sand beaches searching for the best spot to surf.

 

But the warmer temperatures have drawn even relative newcomers to the beach so far in 2015.

 

‘Everyone’s bugging out about the weather being pretty solid,’ said local surfer Matt Kisilenko, 25. ‘It’s become a known spot now.’

 

Experts said that while the Queens waves, which for water lovers rival Christmastime destinations such as the tree at Rockefeller Center or the famed Macy’s windows, should be enjoyed by more than just dedicated locals, beginners should learn the rules first before diving in.

 

‘A lot of these people come down here with no clue, get down here and just paddle out,’ said Bradach Walsh, 42, owner of Rockaway Beach Surf Club. ‘It’s super dangerous for them and for people who have been surfing for a long time.’

 

On Friday, fog enveloped the shoreline as surfers in wetsuits enjoyed some of the season’s best waves so far. Morning beach walkers stopped to watch.

 

Holiday or not, ‘we come here as much as we can’, said Ken Ishimoto, 37, with his surfing buddy, Kazu Imafuku.

 

Imafuku, a Manhattanite by way of Tokyo, said it’s therapeutic to escape to Rockaway, especially when the waves are good.

 

‘Just to stay connected with nature,’ he said, before jumping into the water. ‘It’s beautiful.’

 

Record highs were recorded early on Christmas Eve in Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse, as temperatures topped 60F in each city. Albany’s 58F on Thursday morning broke the previous record of 57F set on December 24, 1941.

 

People were seen sunbathing in Florida this week, with Miami forecast to endure 86F heat on what is normally one of the coldest days of the year. 

 

In New York, temperatures hit 72F on Christmas Eve, with many city residents walking around in shorts, T-shirts and flip flops in place of their usual winter attire of boots and parkas.  

 

In Washington DC on Christmas morning, temperatures continued the warm trend as they hit 69 degrees, while normally cold Boston hit 59 degrees, according to CBS. Many areas on the East Coast hit temperatures 20 degrees higher than normal. 

 

Meanwhile in Las Vegas it was a white Christmas yesterday.

 

A windy cold front swept through the Las Vegas area early on Friday, heralding flurries mixed with rain showers.  

 

Meteorologist Chris Stachelski noted that the trace of snow recorded at McCarran International Airport tied a Christmas Day record set in 1941. Traces also were recorded on Christmas in 1988 and 2008.

 

Nothing stuck on the sidewalks of the Strip, but some northwest Las Vegas neighborhoods received a dusting of snow yesterday. It melted as the morning dawned clear and sunny with temperatures in the high 30s

 

Meteorologist John Salmen says the wet weather blew in with windy squalls that brought gusts up to 38 miles per hour between midnight and 2am Friday.

 

Many meteorologists have attributed the unusual heat to the effects of El Nino – an abnormal climate cycle caused by the warming of the Pacific Ocean near the equator that is driving warm air eastward and keeping cold Arctic air at bay.

 

Fall and winter have been very mild on the east coast so far this year. Thursday’s record is one of several set in the past two months, with 66F recorded in Central Park on December 13.

 

‘It’s kind of like this is our little gift for the last two winters,’ said the National Weather Service’s Carlie Buccola.

 

The monthly average temperature for December is 37.5F in New York. Last winter was especially cold and snowy.

 

Many took advantage of the balmy conditions, heading out for a pre-Christmas jog dressed in just a T-shirt and shorts.

 

And for those who were hoping to enjoy ice skating in the the city were in for a slippery surprise. Wednesday’s downpour washed away some of the ice from the rink at Bryant Park overnight and early Thursday morning.

 

‘It’s been a little bit of a struggle early on with the warm weather, but we’ve still had great crowds all season as usual,’ Mike Schulman, Bryant Park rink manager, told ABC 7 NY.

Courtesy of dailymail.co.uk

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