Despite cooling temperatures, 5 B.C. communities set record highs Friday

Friday was a day of cooler weather in Metro Vancouver after a short-lived heat wave that brought warnings and record temperatures.

While the Lower Mainland cooled off, however, the hot weather continued in eastern regions of the province.

Five communities across the province set new high temperature records Friday, and all of them are closer to the Alberta border than the Pacific Ocean.

The oldest record to fall Friday was in Creston, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada. The high temperature of 35.7 C narrowly topped the previous record for Aug. 19, which was 35.6 C, set 80 years ago in 1942.

The other four records set Friday were:

• Dawson Creek area: new record of 31.7, old record of 29.5 set in 1981
• Fort St. John area: new record of 29.9, old record of 28.3 set in 1967
• Mackenzie area: new record of 31.7, old record of 29.3 set in 2004
• Sparwood area: new record of 33.4, old record of 30.8 set in 2020

Environment Canada notes that the temperature records recorded Friday are considered preliminary until they go through quality assurance and quality control procedures, which can take weeks.

It's rare for preliminary records to be reversed, according to the agency.

Temperatures in the Lower Mainland are expected to rise this week, with Environment Canada currently predicting highs of 27 C in Vancouver and 31 C in Abbotsford by Wednesday and Thursday.

"We will see a gradual rise in temperatures," ECCC meteorologist Bobby Sekhon told CTV News on Friday. 

"Whether those temperatures are high enough to get the heat warning criteria remains to be seen, but certainly something we're going to be looking at."