What Is Missouri’s Hottest Day of the Year on Average?

Missouri is about to enter a period of time where extreme heat advisories will become the norm, but will the hottest day of the year occur within that time frame? It depends on where you live in Missouri.

The Missouri Department of Public Safety just issued this warning today

Those heat indexes are serious business. The entire state of Missouri is about to get blazing hot which means having reliable cooling will now literally be a life and death situation, but is this as bad as it gets this year? According to Climate.gov, the answer is sadly probably not. Here are the average hottest days of the year in Missouri which varies by region:

• Northern Missouri: Usually around July 20–23
• Central Missouri: Usually around July 19–22
• Southern Missouri: Often July 18–21
• Urban areas like St. Louis can occasionally see their hottest day drift into late July or even August due to the urban heat island effect.

The other wildcard in this hottest day of the year question is how abnormal Missouri weather has been this year. Winter seemed to end a couple weeks early and storm season has extended several weeks longer than is typical. That's why an expectation that the hottest day of the year will arrive in Missouri when it normally does might mean we'll all be in for a surprise.

Regardless if the heat reaches its apex in Missouri this week or a month from now, this is the time when it's a great idea to stay in touch with your friends and family especially those who are most at risk like the elderly that live on their own. Making sure they maintain a reliable way to access cooling is vital as the heat is now on.