Weather Records on 5 May 1974

716 weather records were set or tied worldwide on 5 May 1974. Highest significance: Petrusville (Pol), ZA.

Key Facts for 5 May 1974

On 5 May 1974, 716 weather records were set or tied at long-record stations worldwide.
46 were record highs and 246 were record lows, counting maximum and minimum temperature.
By timescale, 0 were all-time records, 12 monthly and 704 daily.
Petrusville (Pol) set a daily record precipitation of 50.0 mm (2.0 in) on 5 May 1974.
Across 160 earlier years (1795 to 2026) the same calendar date averaged 441 records.

Record Map

716 stations

716 station records on 5 May 1974 are marked on the map, coloured by record type. Dot size shows the significance score. Made with Natural Earth.

Weather records on 5 May 1974: highest significance records shown on the map
Station	Country	Type	Value	Significance
Petrusville (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	62 of 100 (Major)
Katdoornput 29	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	61 of 100 (Major)
Smithfield (Mun)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	60 of 100 (Major)
Groot Constantia	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	57.9 mm (2.3 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Durbanville (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	67.5 mm (2.7 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Bordeaux	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	35.0 mm (1.4 in)	59 of 100 (Notable)
Tevredenheid	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	57 of 100 (Notable)
Groenfontein "Montagu"	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	41.0 mm (1.6 in)	55 of 100 (Notable)
Tulbagh (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	47.0 mm (1.9 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
Hebron	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	54 of 100 (Notable)
De Kalk	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	28.3 mm (1.1 in)	52 of 100 (Notable)
Middelplaats	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	50 of 100 (Notable)
Hofmeyer (Mun)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	28.7 mm (1.1 in)	49 of 100 (Notable)
Georgievsk	Russia	Record daily precipitation	39.8 mm (1.6 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Royal Observatory	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Langgewens (Wrs)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Bloemfontein Kings Park	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	48 of 100 (Notable)
Boetsap (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	38.5 mm (1.5 in)	47 of 100 (Notable)
Philadelphia Polisie	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	44.3 mm (1.7 in)	46 of 100 (Notable)
Chileka	Malawi	Record daily precipitation	26.7 mm (1.1 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
San Felipe Orizatlan (Smn)	Mexico	Record daily precipitation	169.9 mm (6.7 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Grantham	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	28.0 mm (1.1 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Plooysburg S.A.P.	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	45 of 100 (Notable)
Kakabeka Falls	Canada	Record daily snowfall	9.9 cm (3.9 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Paardekraal	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	28.0 mm (1.1 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Luckhoff (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	37.0 mm (1.5 in)	44 of 100 (Notable)
Jacobsdal (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	26.5 mm (1.0 in)	43 of 100 (Notable)
Moreton Sugar Mill	Australia	Record daily precipitation	107.0 mm (4.2 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Elsenburg	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	55.5 mm (2.2 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Lelie Shoek	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	27.0 mm (1.1 in)	42 of 100 (Notable)
Avoca	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Ebenhaezer	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	26.7 mm (1.1 in)	41 of 100 (Notable)
Kroonplaats	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	76.5 mm (3.0 in)	40 of 100 (Notable)
Stellenbosch (Tnk)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	47.5 mm (1.9 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Canton 1 SW	United States	Record daily precipitation	53.8 mm (2.1 in)	39 of 100 (Notable)
Minden	Canada	Record daily snowfall	5.1 cm (2.0 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Nieuwoudville (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	38.0 mm (1.5 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Benfontein	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	40.5 mm (1.6 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Marion	United States	Record daily precipitation	42.2 mm (1.7 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Winnsboro	United States	Record daily precipitation	43.2 mm (1.7 in)	38 of 100 (Notable)
Haliburton A	Canada	Record daily snowfall	17.8 cm (7.0 in)	37 of 100 (Notable)
Table.Mtn Woodhead Tunnel	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	57.5 mm (2.3 in)	36 of 100 (Notable)
Roelands Village	Australia	Record daily precipitation	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Robben Island (Vrt)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	28.0 mm (1.1 in)	35 of 100 (Notable)
Malmesbury	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	40.0 mm (1.6 in)	34 of 100 (Routine)
W Chester 2 NW	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-1.1 C (30.0 F)	34 of 100 (Routine)
Haileybury	Canada	Record low minimum temperature	-5.6 C (21.9 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Tobolsk	Russia	Record high minimum temperature	13.1 C (55.6 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Mineral-Nye-Vody	Russia	Record daily precipitation	29.3 mm (1.2 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Piketberg (Pol)	South Africa	Record daily precipitation	41.5 mm (1.6 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Brockton	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-3.3 C (26.1 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Fitchburg 4 SE	United States	Record low minimum temperature	-2.2 C (28.0 F)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Blackville 3 W	United States	Record daily precipitation	26.9 mm (1.1 in)	33 of 100 (Routine)
Yamma	Australia	Record daily precipitation	27.6 mm (1.1 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Como	Australia	Record daily precipitation	83.5 mm (3.3 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Kirchdorf/Poel	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	7.0 C (44.6 F)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Pjatigorsk	Russia	Record daily precipitation	43.5 mm (1.7 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Quitaque	United States	Record daily precipitation	52.1 mm (2.1 in)	32 of 100 (Routine)
Waren	Germany	Record low maximum temperature	6.6 C (43.9 F)	31 of 100 (Routine)
Waterville 2	United States	Record daily precipitation	28.2 mm (1.1 in)	31 of 100 (Routine)

Counts by Type and Timescale

716 records

Records set or tied on 5 May 1974 by type: Highest daily maximum 11, Lowest daily maximum 90, Highest daily minimum 35, Lowest daily minimum 156, Heaviest daily rainfall 395, Heaviest daily snowfall 27, Deepest snow cover 2.

Records on 5 May 1974 by type
Record type	Records
Highest daily maximum	11
Lowest daily maximum	90
Highest daily minimum	35
Lowest daily minimum	156
Heaviest daily rainfall	395
Heaviest daily snowfall	27
Deepest snow cover	2

Records on 5 May 1974 by timescale: all-time 0, monthly 12, daily 704.

How Much Records Were Beaten By

612 broken records

Margins by which the 612 broken records beat the old ones, in degrees Celsius for temperature and millimetres for precipitation and snow; the largest margin was 609.0. Ties are not counted.

Top 20 by Significance

5 May 1974

Top 20 records on 5 May 1974 by significance
Date	Station	Record	Value	Beat old record by	Old record stood	Significance
5 May 1974	Petrusville (Pol), ZA	daily rain	50.0 mm (2.0 in)	34.8 mm (1.4 in)	48 years	62 of 100 (Major)
5 May 1974	Katdoornput 29, ZA	daily rain	45.0 mm (1.8 in)	39.9 mm (1.6 in)	51 years	61 of 100 (Major)
5 May 1974	Smithfield (Mun), ZA	monthly rain	52.0 mm (2.0 in)	13.9 mm (0.5 in)	77 years	60 of 100 (Major)
5 May 1974	Groot Constantia, ZA	daily rain	57.9 mm (2.3 in)	36.3 mm (1.4 in)	84 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Durbanville (Pol), ZA	daily rain	67.5 mm (2.7 in)	43.4 mm (1.7 in)	43 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Bordeaux, ZA	daily rain	35.0 mm (1.4 in)	33.2 mm (1.3 in)	47 years	59 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Tevredenheid, ZA	daily rain	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	25.0 mm (1.0 in)	64 years	57 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Groenfontein "Montagu", ZA	daily rain	41.0 mm (1.6 in)	29.6 mm (1.2 in)	57 years	55 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Tulbagh (Pol), ZA	daily rain	47.0 mm (1.9 in)	23.1 mm (0.9 in)	81 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Hebron, ZA	daily rain	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	22.9 mm (0.9 in)	51 years	54 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	De Kalk, ZA	daily rain	28.3 mm (1.1 in)	25.3 mm (1.0 in)	44 years	52 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Middelplaats, ZA	daily rain	30.0 mm (1.2 in)	21.9 mm (0.9 in)	57 years	50 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Hofmeyer (Mun), ZA	daily rain	28.7 mm (1.1 in)	22.6 mm (0.9 in)	57 years	49 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Georgievsk, RU	daily rain	39.8 mm (1.6 in)	28.8 mm (1.1 in)	17 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Royal Observatory, ZA	daily rain	59.0 mm (2.3 in)	12.8 mm (0.5 in)	84 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Langgewens (Wrs), ZA	daily rain	34.5 mm (1.4 in)	26.2 mm (1.0 in)	43 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Bloemfontein Kings Park, ZA	daily rain	30.5 mm (1.2 in)	22.1 mm (0.9 in)	52 years	48 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Boetsap (Pol), ZA	daily rain	38.5 mm (1.5 in)	31.4 mm (1.2 in)	32 years	47 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Philadelphia Polisie, ZA	daily rain	44.3 mm (1.7 in)	34.1 mm (1.3 in)	5 years	46 of 100 (Notable)
5 May 1974	Chileka, MW	daily rain	26.7 mm (1.1 in)	24.9 mm (1.0 in)	33 years	45 of 100 (Notable)

Significance is a score from 0 to 100 combining margin, the age of the old record and the length of the station's record. How it is computed.

The Same Date in Other Years

1795 to 1974

Records set or tied on this calendar date in each year from 1795 to 1974. 1974 had 716 records.

Counts for years before the ledger starts come from the same station rules.

Records on 05-05 in each year
Year	Records
1795	2
1805	1
1836	1
1837	1
1840	1
1850	4
1852	1
1855	1
1856	2
1859	2
1861	5
1862	1
1864	2
1867	1
1875	2
1877	2
1878	1
1879	2
1880	1
1882	1
1884	2
1885	1
1886	3
1888	3
1889	5
1890	2
1891	3
1892	5
1894	3
1895	2
1896	1
1897	2
1898	6
1899	5
1900	3
1901	2
1902	5
1903	9
1904	14
1905	17
1906	4
1907	16
1908	14
1909	17
1910	19
1911	17
1912	17
1913	46
1914	39
1915	73
1916	98
1917	70
1918	24
1919	77
1920	41
1921	63
1922	98
1923	139
1924	132
1925	143
1926	220
1927	115
1928	149
1929	256
1930	469
1931	250
1932	166
1933	339
1934	448
1935	417
1936	377
1937	159
1938	362
1939	222
1940	446
1941	415
1942	529
1943	427
1944	1,237
1945	355
1946	306
1947	528
1948	671
1949	1,099
1950	893
1951	174
1952	723
1953	659
1954	607
1955	382
1956	363
1957	561
1958	404
1959	587
1960	773
1961	644
1962	261
1963	249
1964	643
1965	724
1966	1,413
1967	613
1968	434
1969	530
1970	386
1971	444
1972	292
1973	542
1974	716
1975	711
1976	402
1977	708
1978	1,033
1979	1,534
1980	562
1981	524
1982	659
1983	475
1984	767
1985	463
1986	968
1987	895
1988	820
1989	941
1990	1,511
1991	1,176
1992	1,004
1993	725
1994	743
1995	888
1996	1,368
1997	1,220
1998	1,707
1999	1,301
2000	1,442
2001	963
2002	883
2003	1,792
2004	1,401
2005	1,009
2006	657
2007	850
2008	453
2009	751
2010	1,053
2011	857
2012	1,281
2013	1,265
2014	680
2015	783
2016	554
2017	849
2018	481
2019	538
2020	403
2021	733
2022	514
2023	579
2024	961
2025	717
2026	538

Download the Data

Data for records on 1974-05-05: CSV or JSON. Field meanings are on the data page.

Sources: Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Climatology Network Daily (GHCN-Daily). Records are computed by World Extreme Weather Monitor and are not official NOAA products. (US Government open data (NOAA NCEI)) Made with Natural Earth. Public domain map data. Borders are Natural Earth's de facto depiction. Data as of 2026-10-17 (17 October 2026). Records are computed by this site and are not official.

Data as of 2026-10-16. Last revised 16 October 2026 (2026-10-16).

Margin	Records
0 to 100	610
100 to 200	1
200 to 300	0
300 to 400	0
400 to 500	0
500 to 600	0
600 to 700	1