A 60-Degree January Day for Toms River Still Not a Record Breaker

Though it crept into the 60-degree mark, a mild Saturday was not a record-breaking day for a high January temperature.

Although Toms River hit a reported 63 degrees Jan. 7, it won't hold any as the hottest day in January history for the area, according to the National Weather Service. It's not even in the top ten.

The record was Jan. 24, 1967. It was 78 degrees that day. Yes, a January that nearly hit 80 degrees Fahrenheit.

It was a heat wave for several days in 1967, as Jan. 23 had the second-highest temperature ever for a January: 74 degrees. On Jan. 25 and 26, temperatures hovered at 72 degrees that year, according to the National Weather Service.

The temperatures are listed as records for the Atlantic City Area, naming an approximate region instead of an exact coordinate. That's because weather stations throughout the years have relocated, closed or opened in different locations, according to the National Weather Service.

The National Weather Service's online archive of highest daily maximum temperature goes back to 1874, the first year of the archive.

January 2012 is far from over, so perhaps there is time for Mother Nature to break her 1967 record heat. The National Weather Service forecast today, Jan. 9, however, is a sunny 42 degrees.

The ten record temperatures for a January in the Atlantic City area are:

• 78 degrees: Jan. 24, 1967

• 74 degrees: Jan. 23, 1967

• 72 degrees: Jan. 6, 2007; Jan. 30, 2002; Jan. 27, 1974; Jan. 26, 1967; Jan. 25, 1967.

• 71 degrees: Jan. 29, 2002

• 69 degrees: Jan. 7, 2008; Jan. 3, 2004.