Despite the shorter days and changing leaves of autumn, Utah experienced summer-like temperatures Friday — and a record-breaking high for some areas of the Wasatch Front.
Forecasters at the National Weather Service said the high temperature hit 92 degrees Friday at the Salt Lake City International Airport. That’s the hottest October day ever recorded in Utah’s capital city, dating back to 1874, according to the weather service.
Across the state, near-record or record temperatures were expected by Friday afternoon. On Friday morning, the NWS predicted an 85% chance of 90 degrees in Provo, a 65% chance in Salt Lake City and a 10% chance in Ogden.
“If we hit 90 degrees … that would be our all-time record maximum for the month of October,” said Christine Kruse, lead meteorologist with the NWS Salt Lake City office. “That’s a pretty significant record to break.”
Before Friday, the latest date in the year that Salt Lake City recorded a 90-degree high was on Sept. 30 in 2011. Provo experienced the same on Oct. 2, 2010.
According to Kruse, Utah is averaging temperatures 15 to 20 degrees above normal.
In St. George, forecasts predicted a high near 100 degrees for Friday, with a slight cooldown of 1 or 2 degrees for the weekend.
At the St. George Marathon — held annually on the first Saturday of October — runners are set to start at 7 a.m., when the temperature is expected to be 68 degrees.
Marathon officials expect most runners to finish the half-marathon by 9 a.m. Officials said they plan to pull any remaining marathoners from the course by 1 p.m., according to Fox 13.
“For anybody who’s going to be outside,” Kruse recommended light-colored clothing and proper hydration. She also advised people performing any outdoor activities do so before noon or after 4 p.m.
Some weather models, Kruse said, see a possible cool shift by next Friday. But, Kruse added, Utahns should expect temperatures to still stay “way warmer than normal.”
“It doesn’t look like there’s really a noticeable end in sight,” Kruse said.
As a result of warm temperatures, low humidity and strong winds on Friday, the NWS issued fire risk warnings for the Wasatch and Uinta mountains and across west-central and southwest Utah. Gusts of 35 mph and humidity levels near 8% to 15% are expected for the region, the weather agency shared on X.
The warnings were expected to stay in place for Friday afternoon and evening.
