netherlands coldest
© ANP
With a maximum temperature of 10.9 degrees measured in De Bilt, Sunday was officially the coldest September 23rd ever measured in the Netherlands, Weeronline reports. The previous cold record for this day was 11.5 degrees on September 23rd, 1974. Sunday was also the coldest day in the Netherlands since April 5th.

The chilly weather on Sunday stood in stark contrast against the warm late summer weather of the past week. On Tuesday Maastricht even had a last tropical day, with a maximum above 30 degrees.

This is the third cold record broken in the Netherlands this year. The other two cold records were for the coldest February 28th and March 17th ever measured. The country also counted nine heat records over the summer.

Sunday was extra chilly because of large areas of rain moving across the country. Thick clouds shielded the sun and prolonged rainfall meant that the day did not warm up. Most of the rainfall pulled out of the country on Sunday night, but Monday will still be rainy, especially in the coastal areas.

Maximum temperatures will climb somewhat as the week progresses. Monday will be between 14 and 15 degrees, Tuesday around 16 degrees and Wednesday around 18 degrees, according to the weather service. The week will be partly cloudy and largely dry from Tuesday.