AFTER three wet years, rainfall in the Wimmera dropped well below average last year.
Rainfall at Longerenong College in 2012 was 25 per cent below the long-term average.
Weather statistics compiled by Brett Allender show rainfall at the college was below average in 2012 after three years of being above the long-term figure.
The cumulative rainfall for the year was 315 millimetres, 100mm less than the average of 415.7 millimetres.
It made 2012 the driest year since 2006, when 197.2 millimetres fell.
Just 16.4 millimetres fell at Longerenong during December, more than 11 millimetres less than the long-term average.
Rain fell on five days during the month, with the biggest drop being 11.2 millimetres on December 15.
February was the driest month of the year with 3.8 millimetres, while June recorded the highest monthly total of 59.6 millimetres.
Temperatures during December were closer to the long-term figures, with an average maximum temperature of 28.9 degrees Celsius.
The long-term average maximum temperature for the month is 27.5 degrees.
It was the fourth consecutive month of above-average temperatures, and the 10th month of the year where the average maximum temperature was higher than the long-term figure.
The hottest day of the month was December 23 with a top of 41 degrees, while December 4 was the coldest day at 21 degrees.
January was the warmest month of the year with a maximum average temperature of 31.5 degrees, while July was the coldest month at 13.6 degrees.