In brief
The 137th Rose Parade in Pasadena experienced unexpected heavy rain on New Year's Day, ending a two-decade dry streak. With temperatures around 58°F, the rain caught marching bands and thousands of attendees by surprise. Meanwhile, cold weather systems impacted celebrations nationwide, especially in New York City, where the New Year’s Eve ball drop was overshadowed by freezing temperatures.
Rain poured down on the iconic Rose Parade on Thursday for the first time in 20 years, as flood warnings and evacuation orders in Southern California joined snow squalls and frigid temperatures affecting the country's midsection to mark the first day of 2026.
Marching bands, floats, and throngs of spectators were soaked by one to two inches (2.5 to 5 centimeters) of rain at the 137th Rose Parade in Pasadena. The mercury stood at a chilly 58 degrees Fahrenheit (14.4 degrees Celsius) at the 8 a.m. start of the parade.
Meanwhile, in New York City, hats and gloves were necessities as the city braced for the coldest temperatures in a decade during its New Year’s Eve ball drop.
Despite the weather challenges, hundreds of thousands gathered along the nearly six-mile route in Pasadena. Millions more tuned in to watch on national television. Organizers from the Pasadena Tournament of Roses made only minor adjustments for the weather, such as keeping the tops on convertibles that carried grand marshals including Earvin 'Magic' Johnson.
The National Weather Service had been monitoring rain forecasts for the event, which had remained dry for two decades before this year's unexpected rain. On New Year’s Day, the service issued a flood watch for all California counties and a coastal flood advisory through Sunday for much of the Pacific Coast near San Francisco.
Residents affected by last year's devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area were under evacuation warnings as rain intensified.
Conditions across the nation varied dramatically, with heavy snow affecting regions from Wisconsin through northern Illinois and Michigan into northern New Jersey, southeastern New York, and New England. A significant portion of flights faced delays out of both San Diego International Airport and Boston Logan, according to FlightAware.
