B.C. heat wave: Here's how hot it could get in Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley this week
A heat wave passing through southeastern B.C. is expected to bring above-seasonal temperatures in the next few days, a special weather statement warns.
Environment Canada's notice says temperatures during the day are predicted to be about five to 10 degrees higher than normal for this time of year.
- Stay up to date with your local forecast here
- An 83-year-old temperature record was just broken in B.C.
A ridge associated with warm temperatures will move inland Tuesday, the weather authority says, which will lead to a couple cooler days mid-week.
But by the weekend, the heat is expected to return.
"The ridge will rebuild from Thursday onward and herald more dry and very warm conditions through the weekend," the weather statement says.
Environment Canada's notice covers Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Greater Victoria, Eastern and Inland Vancouver Island, Southern Gulf Islands, Howe Sound, Whistler and the Sunshine Coast.
Environment Canada predicts Vancouver's temperatures will reach 25 C and 24 C on Monday and Tuesday, respectively. On Wednesday and Thursday it's expected to be a little cooler and get no warmer than 22 C.
But on the weekend it could get as hot as 28 C on Saturday, Environment Canada's forecast for Vancouver shows.
The average high temperature for that day is about 20 C in the city and the highest temperature on Environment Canada's record for that day is 30.2 C, which was noted in 2002.
In parts of the Fraser Valley, it's expected to get even warmer. Chilliwack's forecast for the weekend says it could get as hot as 33 C on Saturday.
BC HYDRO EXPECTS HEAT WAVE TO BREAK RECORD
As the mercury rises all over British Columbia, analysts at BC Hydro are predicting electricity use will smash a summer record.
Sunday night already saw a significant increase over a week earlier.
“We’re definitely seeing numbers creep up, but we expect those to continue to go up higher and higher as it gets hotter and hotter this week,” said BC Hydro spokesperson Mora Scott.
Analysts are able to get real-time electricity readings, and usage is measured in hourly increments.
They figure “the peak hourly load” record will likely be broken between the hours of 5 and 6 p.m. when most people get home and begin cooking.
When it’s hot, customers also turn on their fans and air conditioners, and they eat up a lot of power.
“It’s definitely a possibility,” said Scott.
Hydro recommends customers close their blinds during the day, because that can keep up to 60 per cent of heat outside homes.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Alice Munro, Nobel literature winner revered as short story master, dead at 92
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
Latest updates on air quality alerts, and when the smoke may reach Ontario and Quebec
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
Are these Canada's best restaurants? Annual top 100 list revealed
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
Attack on prison van in France kills 2 officers, inmate escapes
Armed assailants killed two French prison officers and seriously wounded three others in an attack on a convoy in Normandy on Tuesday and an inmate escaped, officials said.
Steal a car, lose your driver's licence for 10 years under new Ontario proposal
Repeat car thieves may face lengthy licence bans under proposed changes to Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act.
$1.6B parts plant for Honda electric vehicle batteries coming to Niagara Region
A Japanese company has announced it will build an approximately $1.6-billion plant in Ontario's Niagara Region that will make a key electric vehicle battery component as part of Honda's supply chain in the province.
B.C. brings in law on name changes on day that child killer's new identity revealed
The BC NDP have tabled legislation aimed at stopping people who have committed certain heinous acts from changing their names.
Manitoba premier to visit areas impacted by wildfire
Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew will get a close-up look at the devastation from a large wildfire burning in northern Manitoba Tuesday.
1 killed, 3 injured including toddler, after Hwy. 417 crash in Ottawa
Ontario Provincial Police are responding to a fatal collision involving two vehicles on Highway 417 in Ottawa's west end on Tuesday morning.