By Natalie De La Garza
Staff Writer
CARIBOU, Maine — It’s been a cold winter — an obvious statement, but officials with the National Weather Service in Caribou reported in a public information statement on Tuesday morning that there have been a total of 51 nights this season with a below-zero temperature in Caribou.
Typically, the winter consists of roughly 37 below-zero days and the new “51” figure is the greatest number experienced by the region since the winter of 2002-03.
The low temperature in Caribou on Monday, for example, was a balmy 16 degrees, making it the lowest temperature observed so late into the winter season since March 18, 1993; overall, Monday’s 16 degree high was only two degrees above the all-time lowest high temperature of the day, 14 degrees, set back in 1976.
“By comparison, the average high temperature this time of the year at Caribou is 34 degrees,” wrote NWS Meterologist Corey Bogel in the public information statement. Bogel also stated that there is a high likelihood that March of 2014 will end up among the top five coldest Marches on record — maybe even the top three; the coldest March on record is rooted way back in 1939, with an average monthly temperature of 15.3 degrees.
On top of the cold, the county was hit with over a foot of snow on March 12 and 13.
The highest amount of snow was recorded in Dyer Brook, with 20 inches.
Linneus received the second greatest amount of snow, at 19 inches, followed by Presque Isle and Island Falls with 18 inches each.
Houlton, Caribou, Limestone, Danforth, Mars Hill, Van Buren and Madawaska all received roughly 16 inches of snow.
New Sweden, Ashland and Bridgewater all received 15 inches of snow, and both Connor and Eagle Lake accumulated about 14 inches of snow.
