On this date in 1996, the remnants of Hurricane Fran — which made landfall in the North Carolina Outer Banks — swept through the D.C. region. Rainfall totaled around 1 to 4 inches, with the heaviest amounts west of the Beltway and especially toward the mountains. Widespread totals of 6 to 10 inches occurred in the Blue Ridge, according to the National Weather Service.
“The remnants of Hurricane Fran shot up the spine of Virginia’s Blue Ridge yesterday, causing widespread flash flooding in the mountains, while the fringe of the storm soaked the Washington area, toppling electric lines, downing trees and sending the Potomac River over its banks onto Alexandria’s waterfront,” The Washington Post reported on its front page the next day.
And on this date in 2008, a calendar-day record 3.5 inches of rain fell as Tropical Storm Hanna passed over the Delmarva Peninsula. “The first tropical storm to hit the Washington area this season left the region windblown and thoroughly soaked yesterday, causing one fatal car accident, flooding dozens of roads and turning quiet suburban creeks into fast-rising, muddy rivers,” The Post wrote the next day.
Here are other notables from the day:
- Average high: 84
- Average low: 67
- Record high: 98 (1954)
- Record low: 47 (1909)
- Record rainfall: 3.5 inches (2008)
