(Reuters] – The fourth-warmest year in America’s contiguous United States was last year, with nearly all of the country experiencing temperatures above average, according to a summary of a Government Report published Monday.

National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), which provided the analysis, came just hours after European Union scientists claimed that last year was the fifth-hottest ever recorded. This added to the evidence supporting the planet’s ongoing warming trend.

The contiguous United States has six of the hottest years in its 127-years record keeping, according to NCEI in an overview of the comprehensive climate report, which will be published in its entirety later in the week.

In 2021, the average temperature was 54.5 degrees Fahrenheit (12.25 degrees Celsius), 2.5 above the 20th-century average. In 2012, the record was 55.3 degrees Fahrenheit (12.94 Celsius).

New Hampshire and Maine, both in Northeastern America, saw temperatures that were especially high. These states had their second-warmest year ever. The Northeast, Midwest, and West all experienced temperatures that were significantly higher than average, while Southern states had more consistent conditions.

According to the report, there were 20 climate and weather disasters that caused losses of more than $1 billion. The report included Wildfires throughout the United States and a February cold snap which left power outages in many areas of the country. There were also December tornadoes that hit Kentucky and the surrounding states.

The second highest number of billion-dollar events was recorded. In 2020, 22 events were the most expensive.

The total U.S. catastrophe costs for this year surpassed $145 billion. The most severe disaster was Hurricane Ida which struck the U.S. Gulf Coast on August 31st. It caused losses of $75 billion.

These events were responsible for 688 deaths, the most in a single decade.

NCEI can be described as a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. On Jan. 13, 2013, the full climate report will be released by NCEI.