Extreme temp swing took area on a rollercoaster ride

SIKESTON -- The region experienced a rollercoaster ride of temperatures from highs Saturday to lows on Monday. High temperatures on Saturday exceeded the 70-degree mark in many locations, according to the National Weather Service in Paducah, Ky. Low temperatures on Monday morning dipped all the way into the single digits and teens. Sikeston saw a 50-degree swing in temperatures. According to the Sikeston Board of Municipal Utilities Power Plant, the temperature recorded early Sunday was 71 and dropped to 21 degrees as the day progressed. By Monday, the low reached 14 degrees. Nearly everywhere but the far northern counties saw a temperature change of 55 to 65 degrees over this time period, according to the Weather Service. "This is one of our largest temperature drops on record. Looking back at records since 1938, the 59-degree temperature drop in Paducah from Saturday afternoon to late Sunday evening was tied for the second largest drop from one calendar day to the next," the Weather Service said adding only the 61-degree drop back on Jan. 25-26, 1943, was greater. The weekend 59-degree temperature drop was also the second largest on record record in Cape Girardeau, which is one of three official climate observation stations for the NWS. The high was 70 degrees with a low 50 degrees. The largest temperature drop on record for Cape Girardeau is a 64-degree drop, which occurred Jan. 22-23, 1963, when the high was 50 and low was -14 degrees. In Evansville, Ind., they experienced a 58-degree drop from Saturday afternoon to late Sunday evening. This ties for the sixth largest temperature drop on record from one calendar day to the next, dating back to 1897. The largest drop occurred on Feb. 20-21, 1963.