Atlanta just broke a daily rainfall record set in July 1887

Rainy night in Atlanta with red lights on the city and highway, taken from the Jackson Street Bridge — Shutterstock

With only a few days left in July, it’s officially one of the wettest Julys on record in Atlanta! With 12.7 inches of rain this month alone, this July was the fourth wettest July on record in Atlanta. Our recorded data also goes back to 1879, so there is plenty of comparison!

The five wettest Julys on record in Atlanta are:

17.71 inches – 1994
14.63 inches – 2005
14.11 inches – 1887
12.70 inches – 2024
11.26 inches – 1948

*Atlanta Airport data, reported by 95.5 WSB

rain on the highway through the window — Susan Swavely

New daily record in Atlanta

In addition to being the fourth wettest July on record, Atlanta’s stormy skies also set a new daily precipitation record for July 28. Nearly 25% of July’s total rainfall has been recorded since last SundayThe National Weather Service in Peachtree, Georgia, reported a “record daily maximum rainfall set in Atlanta” of 3.46 inches.

The report continues: “This beats the previous record of 3.07 inches set in 1887.”

Atlanta’s average rainfall for July is 4.36 inches, so the 12.70 inches of rain represents an excess of 8.34 inches!

Puddle on the lawn caused by thunderstorm. Close-ups of raindrops falling on water and dry leaves. — Shutterstock

“We needed it”

Sure, we’ve all heard at least one person look at the rain and say, “We needed that.” But the old saying was true this time! With such a hot and dry June, droughts in north Georgia certainly benefited from the heavy precipitation.

On the other hand, flash floods and power outages due to the storm have been reported. To stay safe during a flash flood, avoid driving, walking, etc. through flash flood waters, especially if you cannot see the bottom. You may not be able to tell how deep puddles are!