Key takeaways:
- According to Environment Canada, fourteen records were set around the region on Tuesday.
- The oldest record to drop was in the Agassiz region of the Fraser Valley, where the mercury struck 36.5 C, nearly one degree higher than the last record set in 1899.
Constant heat alarms cover most of British Columbia, and Environment Canada says the sweltering situations have demolished almost a dozen everyday temperature records.
Fourteen records were set around the region on Tuesday, from Prince Rupert to Bella Bella, Ashcroft, and across the Fraser Valley and South Coast.
The oldest record to fall was in the Agassiz region of the Fraser Valley, where the mercury struck 36.5 C, nearly one degree higher than the prior record set in 1899.
B.C. also declared the top seven hottest places in the nation on Tuesday, including Lytton, the burning area in Canada at 40.2 C.
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It’s the first time this year that B.C. had officially witnessed the heat rise past 40 C, although the scorcher was not a record for Lytton, which set the nation’s all-time high temperature of 49.6 C the previous year, one day before a wildfire engulfed the village.
In addition to heat alerts of temperatures up to 41 C for much of the central and southern Interior and circumstances only a little cooler elsewhere in B.C., the climate office is keeping air quality advisories for eastern areas of Metro Vancouver, the lower Fraser Valley, and the Fraser Canyon.
Prophets say sunlight responds with pollutants to produce high concentrations of ground-level ozone east of Vancouver, potentially inducing breathing problems for pregnant people, kids, outside workers, or anyone with lung disease or asthma.
Possible heat strain
According to WorkSafe B.C., almost a third of heat stress-related claims last year came from people who are working indoors. This week, it urges people to stay calm, hydrated, and out of the direct sun.
Source – CBC News
