January 2021 is in the books. It was a little warmer than average and a bit drier than normal, too.

What You Need To Know

  • Most areas in January were warmer than normal

  • Only two real rain-producing fronts

  • The month ended with some rain

  • February can normally begin some warming

January began very warm, following a warm final two days of 2020. But, most of the month was actually below normal. The two warm-ups we had were quite a bit above normal, leading to the whole month's average ending a bit above the long-term normals.

There were only two really good rain-producing fronts. One of them was on the last night of the month and most of that rain fell early in the morning on February 1. We'll recap that next month.

Here is a look at the numbers.

Tampa

Average Temperature: 61.7 (0.9 degree above normal)

Rainfall: 0.82" (1.41" below normal)

Lakeland

Average Temperature: 62.5 (1.8 degrees above normal)

Rainfall: 0.44" (2.20" below normal)

Bradenton

Average Temperature: 63.0 (1.6 degrees above normal)

Rainfall: 0.70" (1.79" below normal)

Brooksville

Average Temperature: 57.9 (1.2 degrees above normal)

Rainfall: 0.92" (2.30" below normal)

Clearwater

Average Temperature: 62.5 (1.1 degrees above normal)

Rainfall: 1.64" (1.29" below normal)

St. Petersburg

Average Temperature: 62.2 (0.6 degree above normal)

Rainfall: 0.42" (2.15" below normal)

Winter Haven

Average Temperature: 61.5 (0.7 degree above normal)

Rainfall: 0.29" (2.19" below normal)

Looking Ahead to February

Typically, during February we can start to see some springtime warmth, especially by the end of the month. And, sometimes, we just continue with a winter chill.

The cold fronts are still frequent and typically lack decent rainfall But, February has had its share of rain events. On Feb. 3-4, 2006, major flooding occured when a front stall overhead and thunderstorms trained across the area. Tampa had 8.29" of rain on Feb. 3, 2006.

Here is how our averages change during February. On the 1st, our average high and low are 71 and 53. By the 28th, they rise to 74 and 56. An average February records 2.81" of rain.

February Extremes

The hottest February day was on Feb. 20, 2018 when we soared to 89 degrees. The coldest was 22 on Feb. 8, 1896 and Feb. 1, 1899.

The wettest February occured in 1937 when 10.92" of rain fell. Hard to believe 2006 didn't break the record!

The driest was in 1911 when only 0.05" of rain fell.

What to Expect in February 2021

2021 will certainly not be the driest as early morning rains on the 1st produced almost an inch of rain in some spots.

The first few days of 2021 will start cold with a warm-up by the end of the first week.