With a gentle ocean breeze providing a welcome respite from the blazing sun, tourists from around the world merely smiled when told the region was suffering under a heat wave.
The weather station at Gonzales Point in Victoria registered a high of 31.7 C at 3 p.m., according to Environment Canada data. But as is often the case, some areas right next to the ocean were cooler; Victoria Harbour had a high of 24 C at 7 p.m.
Early Monday morning, Environment Canada issued a heat warning for Greater Victoria, Southern Gulf Islands, East Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast. It warned of a heat wave with daytime temperatures reaching 29 C to 34 C. A special weather statement was issued for inland Vancouver Island, where temperatures were expected to reach at least 35 C. It turned out to be hotter than that in Port Alberni, where it was 37.4 C at 5 p.m.
“What we are seeing is a robust ridge of high pressure controlling the weather for the next few days,” said Matt Loney, meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada. “Temperatures are expected to be eight to 12 degrees above seasonal normals.”
At Victoria International Airport, the weather station usually cited for Greater Victoria, Monday’s high was 29.6 C at 4 p.m. The record is 33.4 C, set in 2010.
The ridge of high pressure is expected to remain through Wednesday. Night-time lows will also be elevated at around 16 C. The higher night-time temperatures mean people will get little relief from the heat even after the sun goes down.
“The night time lows [at this time] are usually around 12 degrees,” said Loney. Higher night-time temperatures mean homes will stay warmer. “You need a difference in temperature to drive cooling [of a building],” Loney said. “Just opening a window is not enough.” Some people will find it harder to sleep because of the higher night-time temperatures, he said.
The ridge of high pressure is expected to start to break down on Thursday, with temperatures dropping by a few degrees.
Visitor Anthony McIlrae smiled when he was asked about the weather. “I grew up in Pretoria, South Africa, where the climate is subtropical and the temperature can get up to the mid 30s to low 40s in the summer,” said the 43-year-old.
“It’s winter there right now, with the temperature typically in the mid 20s.”
McIlrae said that the only advice he had was to stay hydrated.
Geoff Smith, a tourist from Wilmington, North Carolina, admitted that he was sweating under the clear skies, but still found it comfortable, because it was a dry heat.
“What I always look at is the dew point [of an area] to determine the weather,” said Smith, who is in his 70s. “The higher the dew point, the more humid it will be and the muggier it will feel. The heat then saps the energy out of you.”
He also advises people to drink fluids regularly throughout the day to stay hydrated.
When asked how he and his friends expect to stay hydrated in the summer heat, Gregor Helmus, a 26-year-old from Cologne, Germany shared his simple solution: “Beer and more beer.”
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