In terms of weather, 2023 was a year not to be forgotten. Rain gauges kept filling up, making 2023 the wettest for many places in Drenthe since the beginning of the last century. Furthermore, the year was also warm and sunny.
In Drenthe, between 1100 and 1200 millimeters fell in most places. Normally about 875 millimeters falls. Veenhuizen and Holsloot made it even better with more than 1300 millimeters. “No wonder that we so often went through the fields and forests with boots,” says RTV Drenthe weather forecaster Grieta Spannenburg.
In January things were already going well with the wetness. Then abundant water was stored in the Mandelanden, the Onlanden and the Mepperhooilanden. Also in March, after a short period of winter weather with snow, the drops continued to fall from the sky in buckets. April was also wet.
But from October things went a step further. This month started well, but then a bleak period began. “We experienced one of the wettest autumns in a long time,” says Spannenburg.
It has also rained a lot in recent weeks. “The fact that it rained so often from October to December was partly because the ocean was record warm and therefore a lot of water evaporated. We noticed that.”
Heat and wetness are therefore related. And looking back, June ended up being the summer month of this year. Spannenburg: “Occasionally North Sea clouds blocked the sun, but it warmed up well. Drought became a theme, while we experienced the first tropical day in mid-June. What was striking was the wind that kept blowing. This made it dry extra hard. .”
A record was also broken in June. Eelde achieved an average monthly temperature of 18.1 degrees, the record was 17.9 from 1917.
July and August were a bit more changeable. Several more hot days followed in September. “Suddenly, unprecedented September heat broke out. Here and there we achieved tropical warmth or almost. A few observers just experienced a heat wave.”
This was the hottest year for Hoogeveen, the weather woman said. In Eelde, 2023 will be in second place in terms of temperature.
Were there any special days? Yes, summer storm Poly hit our country in July. This caused trees to fall and train traffic to be halted. And on March 11 we woke up to a white world. “With as much as 5 to 10 centimeters of snow,” says Spannenburg. “The enthusiasts enjoyed it. It did not last long, a day later soft air flowed in at full speed and 2 days later we recorded bizarre maximum temperatures of up to 17 degrees.”