Rain Returns in May As a Hot, Dry Spring Wraps Up

May brought widespread rainfall and some drought relief, along with typical temperatures for this time of year. However, spring was warm and dry overall, leaving us looking for better rain chances later this year.

A Precipitation Bounceback

A long-awaited round of rainfall late in the month made this a near-normal May in terms of precipitation. Data from the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) shows a preliminary statewide average precipitation of 4.05 inches – 0.03 inches above the 1991 to 2020 average – which ranks as our 61st-wettest May since 1895.

This broke a streak of eight consecutive drier-than-normal months dating back to last August. That was the longest dry spell in North Carolina since ten consecutive dry months between December 2006 and September 2007.

The monthly rainfall totals were generally higher in the south, making it a wetter-than-normal month in those areas. With 8.98 inches, Asheville had its 3rd-wettest May on record, and the wettest since 2018. Charlotte totalled 5.87 inches for its 18th-wettest May, and Lumberton’s 4.82 inches ranked as its 28th-wettest May in the past 114 years.

Meanwhile, areas farther north saw below-normal totals once again last month. Greensboro had 3.17 inches and a tie for its 57th-driest May, while Reidsville had its 6th-driest May in the past 63 years, with 1.23 inches. Meanwhile, Raleigh had only 1.54 inches in its 15th-driest May on record. Seven out of the past nine months in Raleigh have had two inches of precipitation or less.

The dry pattern that dominated April finally broke on May 6 and 7 as a cold front moved in, bringing more than 2 inches of rain in the southern Piedmont. The 2.16 inches in Charlotte was its greatest two-day total since early August 2025.

The main rain event played out over Memorial Day weekend as another front stalled out across the state and delivered several days of locally heavy rainfall. Weekly totals reached up to 10.65 inches at our ECONet station on Bearwallow Mountain, with widespread amounts of 2 inches or more except in the northern Piedmont and central coastline.

That rain did eliminate the area of Exceptional Drought (D4) that emerged in the northern Foothills earlier in the month, and it brought improvements to Extreme Drought (D3) and Severe Drought (D2) conditions across the southern tier of the state.

While we have seen an uptick in topsoil moisture and streamflows, especially in the southern Mountains and southern Piedmont, many reservoir levels (such as at Fontana Lake) and groundwater levels (as at the Simpson well in Pitt County) continue to struggle as we head into the summer. That means our May rain was a good start, but not the final answer, for drought recovery.

Balanced Temperatures for May

Despite some hot days, this May was an overall seasonable month with slightly below normal temperatures, on average. NCEI reports a preliminary statewide average temperature of 66.4°F and our 63rd-coolest May out of the past 132 years.

Most areas finished within a degree of their normal monthly temperatures, including a tie for the 54th-warmest May in Raleigh, a tie for the 53rd-coolest May in Fayetteville, and a tie for the 69th-coolest May in Charlotte out of the past 148 years.

The month began with several cloudy days after a cold frontal passage, including high temperatures only in the 50s on May 2. Wilmington’s high of 59°F was its coolest May day since 2009, while Wilson hit only 54°F, which was its coolest May high since 2005.

Another chill arrived behind a mid-month cold frontal passage, giving a frosty morning in the Mountains on May 15. The low temperature in Banner Elk fell to 31°F, marking its latest spring freeze since 2016.

By mid-month, high pressure had set up off our coastline, and aided by low humidity due in part to the ongoing drought, our temperatures climbed well into the 90s even in parts of the Mountains.

On May 19, Raleigh broke its daily record with a high of 97°F, which was also its earliest ever day that warm in a calendar year. Kinston had five consecutive 90-degree days between May 17 and 21, which was its longest streak that warm in any May since 2004.

We finished the month with another warm-up that was most impressive – and oppressive – with the nighttime lows. On May 28, the Wilmington 7 SE Cooperative Observer site tied its record warm low temperature for May, with a minimum of 78°F. And Bayboro had four consecutive nights with a low of 76°F, tying its monthly record warm low set back in 1982.

Spring and Year-to-Date Updates

On the backs of our 4th-warmest March and 2nd-warmest April on record, this climatological spring was one of the warmest we’ve ever seen in North Carolina. Preliminary data from NCEI shows this was our state’s 2nd-warmest spring on record since 1895, trailing only 2012 in the rankings.

Charlotte finished with its warmest spring on record dating back to 1878, while it was the 2nd-warmest spring in Asheville and Greensboro and tied for the 2nd-warmest in Raleigh. This tied for the 4th-warmest spring on record in Elizabeth City.

This spring may be most memorable for the lack of precipitation that helped drought reach extreme levels. Even with a near-normal May factored in, our 5th-driest March and 5th-driest April pushed this to the 3rd-driest spring on record statewide, per NCEI. Our only drier springs happened in 1985 and 1986.

Raleigh had its driest spring on record dating back to 1887, with just 3.97 inches of precipitation: less rain in three months than it averages in March alone. Greensboro finished with its 3rd-driest spring, and it was the 6th-driest for Hickory.

Even after our late May rainfall, the first five months of this year are still among the driest on record in many areas. That includes the driest start to a year for Raleigh, with just 8.32 inches, or 48% of its normal precipitation, so far. New Bern is also off to its driest start to a calendar year since 1949, with 10.20 inches through the end of May.

The major weather stories so far in 2026 are all connected: a dry La Niña winter, only briefly interrupted by one big snowstorm, helped drought degrade this winter, and drought impacts exploded this spring with dry and summer-like weather.

A lack of springtime showers and thunderstorms amid our ongoing drought has also meant fewer severe weather events. There was just one confirmed tornado in the state last month, bringing our year-to-date count to nine total tornadoes. However, those events have occurred on only three different dates. That’s the fewest number of unique days with tornadoes to start a year since 2018.

As we enter the summer, we expect more of our rainfall to come from pop-up showers and storms, which tend to bring decent rain in some spots while other areas miss out. Given that hit-or-miss nature, as well as the precipitation deficits we’re still dealing with, drought is likely to stick around for a while longer.

Hurricane season could offer some hope for more widespread rainfall, but as we noted last month, the clock is ticking on the chances for any tropical storms this year. With warm water currently in place across the Atlantic, this could be a fast-starting season, while the emerging El Niño could shut down storm formation later in the season.

Later this year, that El Niño pattern should begin to bring its usual impacts of wetter weather across our region courtesy of a strong, super-soaking subtropical jet stream. During the strong El Niño years in 1997 and 2015, we shifted from dry weather in August to wetter conditions by September.

If that trend holds, then we can expect more reliable rain by the fall. But we may have to weather a continuing drought and the usual heat of summer until that pattern change happens.