By Sam Wroblewski 630wpro.com
Many look forward to the first day of spring as a changing of the seasons and a departure from the bleak, cold, snowy, Rhode Island winter months. However, historically the Spring Equinox can either bring the sunshine or prolong the last weeks of winter.
Here are 4 historic weather records from first-days-of-spring past.
1. Spring snow storm
A little snow in March is fairly common, but full blown snow storm on the first day of spring is quite rare in Rhode Island. 2015 marked the first time snow has fallen on the Equinox in over 70 years. According to the National Weather Service, in 1944 eight inches of snow fell in Providence.
2. Old man winter holds on
While it didn’t snow on March 20 1956, that first-spring day features a record measure of snow still on the ground. On that day, 20 inches of snow was still leftover from winter.
3. The temperature drops
So much for seeing the first sprouts of spring, in 1949 the temperature dipped to a frigid 8 degrees.
4. Here comes the sun
A lingering winter isn’t the Spring Equinox’s only legacy, unnaturally warm weather has also occurred in the Ocean State. On March 20 1945 (one year after spring snowfall) the mercury rose to a whopping 83 degrees.
