The southwestern region of Pennsylvania only got about 1.73 inches of rainfall in May, which is more than 2 inches lower than the average rainfall for the month, and more than 3 inches lower than May 2022.

Lee Hendricks, meteorologist with the National Weather Service Pittsburgh, said the drier than usual trend is probably going to continue at least until July.

“Warmer than normal, drier than normal is what it’s looking like,” Hendricks said. “We’re going to have slightly above normal temperatures, and the trend for precipitation is going to change with us averaging in June, July, August slightly above normal.”

Hendricks said that although May was the driest in recent years, the record-setting May for the region was in 1911. The month also had lower temperatures than the average May. The average high temperature for May in Pittsburgh is 71.9 degrees, but the 2023 average high was 70.8 degrees. The average low temperature for the month is 50.6 degrees, but this May the average low was 47.7 degrees, according to Hendricks.

Hendricks chalked the dry and cooler weather up to current system patterns.

“Right now we had a fairly strong area of high pressure, which has been dominating much of the Atlantic seaboard,” Hendricks said. “There are no strong systems expected to come through.”

June is looking to be relatively warm, Hendricks said, with the month’s average temperature predicted to surpass the all-time average for the month in the region.

Brian Greenawalt, paramedic and operations supervisor for Harmony EMS, said people should be aware of temperatures and weather forecasts when out and about. In particular, drivers should never leave children or pets in a vehicle that is parked and not running, because it could be detrimental to their health.

“When we're closing in on the 90-degree mark, the temperature in a vehicle can get up to 120, 130 degrees, which is obviously not good for anybody,” Greenawalt said. “At no point should anybody be in a vehicle that is closed up and not running with air conditioning on for any period of time.”

Depending on the person, just a few minutes spent in a hot car could quickly lead to a medical emergency.

“It could be anything from somebody just experiencing mild heat stress all the way up to significant heat stroke, where we see significant dehydration, altered level of consciousness,” Greenawalt said.

Greenawalt said people who notice a child or animal in a car on a summer’s day should act if they believe it to be an emergency.

“They should call 911,” Greenawalt said.