On Thursday, Latvia experienced a remarkable weather event, with Rēzekne recording a new national temperature high of 13.7 degrees Celsius by 1 PM, according to data from the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Center (LVĢMC). This new record surpasses the previous record of 13.5 degrees set in 1997 in Mērsrags, highlighting a significant climate trend in the region. The LVĢMC noted that local temperature records were broken at ten different observation points across the country, demonstrating widespread warmth.

In addition to the record-breaking temperatures, the LVĢMC's observations from various network locations reported temperatures ranging from a low of 2.8 degrees Celsius at the Liepāja port to the high of 13.3 degrees Celsius in Rēzekne. Over the past two weeks, Latvia has seen an unusual pattern of breaking heat records on nine different days, resulting in a total of 58 new records being established. This rapid increase in temperature is indicative of changing weather patterns and trends in the region.

Interestingly, the day also saw the first thunderstorm of the year occur in parts of central and eastern Latvia, particularly in the southern Vidzeme highlands near Madona, with multiple lightning strikes recorded. This combination of high temperatures and thunderstorms is unusual for March, further emphasizing the significance of the weather events occurring in Latvia at this time. Such changes may have implications for agricultural practices and environmental management in the coming months.