Temperature records crashed all over the area, thanks to a heat wave that dominated the weather in August, sending heat indexes well into the triple digits, according to the National Weather Service in Ruskin.

It was the hottest August on record in Lakeland, the second hottest in Winter Haven and the third hottest in Bartow. It was the warmest summer on record in Lakeland, but the eighth and sixth warmest summer in Winter Haven and Bartow respectively, but in Winter Haven the ranking was less than 1 degree F.

Except for a hot spell in 1941, most of the local high temperatures around here have occurred in the past decade or so.

A lot of residents probably got a reminder of how hot it was last month when they got their latest electric bill.

Rainfall, would probably have been really scant except for the passage of Hurricane Idalia offshore, didn’t even make the top 20 wettest Augusts.

It was enough to restore anemic flow in the Upper Peace River to around average flow for this time of year. Before the storm there was not enough water in the river to take a canoe trip that would not have involved some portaging.

If you have questions about the water you drink or boat and fish in, the Seven Rivers Water Festival is the place to go.

This year’s free event will occur at MLK Park, 199 Lake Silver Drive, which is just north of downtown Winter Haven adjacent to the Chain of Lakes Trail.

Ancient Islands Sierra will have a table at the free event, which will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Come by and meet some of our members and learn about water issues facing Polk County.

These issues include:

The planning and financing of multimillion-dollar projects to tap alternative water supplies and how that could affect how much you will pay for water in the future to subsidize new development.

Continuing efforts to preserve or improve water quality on many of Polk County’s major lakes.

Financing projects to reduce flooding problems and create more aquatic wildlife habitat.