Weather worries

Some fishermen feeling effects of cold temperatures

Some Island fishermen have been feeling the effects of the cold weather of the last few weeks. Charlie McGeoghegan, who fishes lobster out of Pinette, said he estimates the cold water has resulted in a 30 per cent decrease in catches so far, although things have started to rebound. “The catches came in slower than normal the first two and a half weeks,’’ McGeoghegan said Thursday. “It’s definitely colder than we’ve seen than I can remember. There is a lot of wind with it, too, which in most jobs doesn’t matter, but in this job makes it pretty miserable.’’ McGeoghegan said he has recorded temperatures on the bottom of the Northumberland Strait. When fishing season opened, it was 0.5 C and soon bumped up to 2.2 C and stayed there for a week before it gradually climbed to about 5.5 C. “Generally, lobsters like to start moving at (3.3 C to 4.4 C) when they start to come alive. It took a while this year.’’ Shane Clinton, who fishes out of Souris, said catches might be down a bit but not much. “The weather is not that bad,’’ Clinton said. “It’s cold in the mornings but it’s normal for this time of year (on the water).’’ The P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association said catches are varying from port to port but, overall, appear to be up. Cindy Day, meteorologist with Salt Wire Network, said the recent cold weather can be blamed on an extra tropical storm that was parked just off the east coast of Newfoundland and Labrador that brought very cold temperatures, with wind and rain. “It’s now stalled east of Newfoundland, and the wrap-around flow from that low-pressure system is pulling in some very cold air, so it’s keeping it below seasonal during the day,’’ Day said, adding that it has resulted in even colder air at night. Charlottetown is averaging eight degrees below normal right now and narrowly missed setting an all-time record on June 4. The coldest day on record was -1.1 C set in 1947. This past Monday, temperatures dipped to -1.0 C, off by one-tenth of a degree. It’s been so cold that the snow is still falling. The Charlottetown Airport reports that 1.6 centimetres of snow fell on Wednesday morning. Frost also continues to be an issue. The average last day of frost for Charlottetown is May 17, but the capital was hit by widespread frost on June 3, and Day said there is a risk of frost again on Sunday. With temperatures expected to top out at 20 C on Thursday, the question is, are we turning the corner? “Generally speaking, we are,’’ Day said, noting that temperatures will climb to an average of 15 or 16 C next week, but that’s still three to four degrees below normal. “There’s still that controlling cold low that’s east of Newfoundland that continues to pull at unseasonably cool air.’’

“It’s definitely colder than we’ve seen than I can remember. There is a lot of wind with it, too, which in most jobs doesn’t matter, but in this job makes it pretty miserable.’’ Charlie McGeoghegan