Long-range B.C. forecast predicts hotter, drier-than-normal summer
Environment Canada is predicting a warmer and drier-than-usual summer for B.C., which is good news for outdoor enthusiasts.
But that could mean an increased risk for forest fires in a province where the wildfire season has already begun, with two aggressive blazes burning out of control in the southern Interior.
The federal weather agency released its long-range forecast for May, June and July, and it looks like it could be a scorcher of a summer for most of Canada.
The agency says depending on the area, there’s a 40 to 50 per cent chance that temperatures will be higher than normal in B.C.
Environment Canada meteorologist Cindy Yu says it is difficult to predict how much higher the temperatures will be than normal, but weather trends indicate there will be more sunny days, much like last year.
The average temperature in Vancouver for June is 15.7 C, and 18 C in July and August. But it is not unusual to have temperatures in the high-20s and low-30s range, she said.
If there is no rain for the last six days in May, it will be the driest month on record.
Yu said so far this month only 1.6 millimetres of rain has fallen at the Vancouver airport, compared with the normal amount of 65 millimetres. The driest May on record was in 2015 with 4.2 millimetres.
The dry, hot weather last year sparked the worst wildfire season in the province’s history.
Thousands of residents were forced to flee their homes as more than 1,300 fires raged throughout the summer months.
On Friday, two wildfires were burning out of control in the southern Interior.
Kevin Skrepnek, with the B.C. Wildfire Service, says the Allie Lake blaze northwest of Kamloops saw “explosive growth” overnight Thursday and has now scorched 1,600 hectares. He said Friday that they are sending in the air tankers to aid in fighting the fire, which is proving difficult to contain.
The other out-of-control blaze at Anderson Lake, west of Lillooet, is burning an estimated 400 hectares of land.