This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Salt Lake City and other municipalities shattered record highs for the date Saturday and came within two degrees of the record for highest temperature in March.
On Saturday afternoon, temperatures climbed to 79 degrees, well above the previous record of 72 degrees set in 1972, according to the National Weather Service. Fillmore and Tooele both reached 77 degrees, breaking the record high of 75 degrees, set in 2007 and 1910, respectively.
Forecasters had expected temperatures in Utah's capital city to reach 80 degrees, which is the hottest day in March on record for the city set in 2012.
Other cities tied record highs: Temperatures in Manti reached 75 degrees, Wendover reached 73 and Alta reached 56.
Temperatures were cooler in the mountains — about 60 degrees at 8,000 feet and in the low 40s at 10,000 feet, the NWS said.
The warm day was partly cloudy and breezy with wind gusts near 30 mph in the Salt Lake Valley. Saturday night, temperatures were forecast to dip down near 50 degrees, and Sunday was expected to be partly cloudy with highs in the mid-70s.
Southern Utah was also toasty with partly cloudy skies and highs in the mid-80s Saturday. Overnight lows were expected to near 50 degrees, and Sunday was forecast as sunny with highs again in the mid-80s.
Avalanche danger Saturday was "considerable" near Logan, "moderate" near Ogden, Salt Lake, Provo, the Uintas, Moab and Abajo and "low" near Skyline, the Utah Avalanche Center said.
Air quality was "green," or good, across the board for Utah all weekend, according to the Department of Environmental Quality.
For more detailed weather information, visit The Salt Lake Tribune's weather page.
Twitter: @mnoblenews