CHAMPAIGN (AP) — State weather experts say Illinois saw its second-coldest April on record this year with temperatures nearly 8 degrees below normal.

Illinois State Climatologist Jim Angel of the Illinois State Water Survey says the statewide average temperature was 44.7 degrees this April. It was colder than any other April dating back to 1895 except April 1907, when the statewide average temperature was 43.1 degrees. The coldest temperature recorded was 1 degree below zero in both Avon and Lincoln on April 2.

The state also saw below-normal precipitation during April. The average precipitation was about 2 ½ inches — 1.3 inches below normal.

Weather experts say snowfall was widespread across Illinois last month, which they describe as “highly unusual.” They say parts of central Illinois got more snow than northwest Minnesota.