July 2025 started very reasonably in Durham, although there was a break in the drought at last and there was some rain in the first week.
There was a very active gust front passed over on 7th July in late afternoon. Winds got pretty wild for 30 mins and the temperature dropped 5.4 degC in 40 minutes. Not much rain though, although it was very heavy for a short period. Dark low menacing cloud approached from the North and dropped a thick curtain of rain.
Temperatures were generally way down from late June though, which was a relief for most of us. The period from the 9th-12th was quite hot, peaking at 28.9 degC on 11th. The Durham Big Meeting (Miners Gala) had a very good day. A very respectable number of days (25) got to 20 degC, and it reached 25 degC on 6 days.
A couple of rain days in the middle of the month accounted for a large percentage of the eventual monthly total. There was 5.6mm on the 15th and 13.9mm on the 19th (the wettest day).
A tornado was reported from Eldon, near Bishop Auckland on the 19th July. Here’s a video featuring a resident who got caught in his hot tub in his garden when the tornado passed. It lifted the roof off his outdoor building.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce376vvnpk1o
Durham County Council scrap Net Zero pledge
It was quite disappointing to hear that the new Durham County Council, headed by the Reform Party, had chosen to abandon its policy to strive for net zero. Deputy Council Leader Darren Grimes said “We are done with expensive virtue-signalling tripe, and care about our residents.”. His Wikipedia page does not reveal any particular meteorological qualifications, so I just have him down as yet another ‘Armchair Weather Expert’ who knows nowt in reality, but is in power at DCC. 😏
Please Support Durham WeatherI will be writing to Mr Grimes to ask him why he is so hostile towards the policy to limit the Greenhouse Gas emissions of the Council.
Read the full story here : Council votes to scrap net zero pledge
Stats from July 2025
Mean Temp : 17.6ºC (+1.8)
Mean Max : 22.3ºC (+2.1)
Mean Min : 13.8ºC (+2.5)
Absolute Max : 28.9ºC on 11th
Absolute Min : 9.7ºC on 8th
Air Frosts : 0
Total Rain : 36.7 mm (-24.2)
Wettest Day : 13.1 mm on 11th
Rain Days : 16 (+5)
Average per rain day : 2.3 mm
Barometer Max : 1030.4 mb on 3rd
Barometer Min : 1002.1 mb on 21st
Barometer Mean : 1018.3 mb
Predominant Weather : A 3.4
Rainfall for the year so far
This shows the extreme dryness in the Spring of 2025 at Durham. April was driest with only 3.5mm recorded.
Monthly totals : Jan 67.9mm, Feb 34.0, Mar 19.9, Apr 3.4, May 24.8, Jun 31.8, Jul 36.7
