December in Decorah was the warmest and wettest in 123 years

December in Decorah was the warmest on record for the town.

Decorah weather observer Richard Bernatz says the temperature averaged 33.8 degrees, which was 12.2 degrees higher than normal.  Contributing to that record was the fact that the temperature never reached zero during December.  In fact, the low temperature on 30 out of 31 days in December was above average.

Bernatz says compared with December of 2015, all 122 other Decembers for which temperatures have been kept in Decorah were cooler.  December's average of 33.8 degrees broke the all-time record by 1.2 degrees.

December's average high in Decorah was 39.5 degrees--9.4 degrees warmer than normal--while December's average low was 28.0 degrees--13.1 degrees warmer than normal.

4.78 inches of precipitation fell during December, 3.58 inches more than average.  That also set an all-time record for Decembers in which records have been kept.  There were 12 days with measurable precipitation--double the normal amount.