Bilaal Masum / Staff Reporter
B.C. has been experiencing a record-breaking amount of heat over the last week, and Environment Canada says that this sunny, warm weather will remain over the next few days as the high ridge of pressure blocking moisture and cool air from the water will not dissipate for the next five to seven days.
“This ridge is pretty well covering the whole province right now. It’s essentially blocking any of the moisture air coming in from the Pacific,” said meteorologist Gregg Walters. “The Sun angle is [also] about the same as it is at the end of August, so it’s like summertime intensity for sunlight.”
Inland temperatures in the lower mainland could reach up to a whopping average of 23 degrees Celsius over the weekend, compared to the normal seasonal average of 14 degrees Celsius for this time of year.
With all of this heat, many temperature records have been broken across B.C., which is made even more highly unusual by the fact it is only April, and the summer season does not start until June 20th this year.
Pemberton hit 26.4 degrees Celsius, beating the 25 degrees Celsius record set in 1926. The Powell River Area also hit a new record with 21.2 degrees Celsius, beating the 20 degrees Celsius record set in 1947.
In Victoria the temperature reached 21 degrees Celsius, barely beating the 20.6 degrees Celsius record set in 1926; while in Nanaimo a new high of 21.5 degrees Celsius beat the previous record of 21 degrees Celsius set in 1989. Whistler also saw a new record with a temperature of 22.6 degrees Celsius, beating the 2010 record of 18.7 degrees Celsius.
However, with these new records and many more, there also comes increased risks as the danger of wildfires is much higher than average due to a combination of high heat and dry weather.
A brush fire has already broken out off of Highway 1 in Chilliwack but has since been contained through the collaboration of the Chilliwack Fire Rescue Services. Nevertheless, the BC Wildfire Service released a tweet warning that “Under conditions of low humidity and little precipitation, it will not take long for the grass to dry out and become flammable, especially in windy conditions.”
Sources:
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