Extreme Heat Persists in Ontario and Quebec, Warns Environment Canada
An oppressive heat wave continued to blanket central and southern Ontario, southern Quebec, and much of the Maritimes on Wednesday, with daytime highs reaching 30°C to 35°C—above 40°C with the humidex. Officials are warning about the dangers of such extreme temperatures.
Environment Canada expects the hot weather to persist into Friday, with overnight temperatures remaining above 20°C.
Jennifer Smith, a national warning preparedness meteorologist with the federal department, noted that a heat wave this intense “has rarely been observed this early in June,” rivaling some of the worst July and August heat waves Eastern Canada has seen in recent years.
“The high humidity and relatively high nighttime temperatures are making this week’s weather especially gruelling,” Smith said Wednesday during a federal government news conference. “People are not able to cool off for an extended period of time. It will be a muggy, hot few days for Eastern Canada.”
Smith mentioned that the heat wave has already broken some temperature records, with more potentially falling. Scientists with Environment Canada will conduct a rapid analysis of the heat wave once it concludes to determine the influence of human-caused climate change. The results, part of the agency’s new rapid attribution project, are expected by the end of next week.
Toronto and Ottawa have both extended hours at certain outdoor pools until Thursday. In Montreal, air-conditioned public buildings, including libraries and cultural centres, are also open longer than usual.
On Wednesday afternoon, volunteers from Toronto non-profit Project FoodChain delivered water to people experiencing homelessness in the city’s west end. The group plans to deliver 230,000 bottles of water across Toronto and neighbouring Peel region.
Quebec’s Health Department recommends spending at least two hours a day in an air-conditioned space, taking at least one cool shower or bath per day, and limiting physical activity. Environment Canada also urges people to check on loved ones, especially those who are disabled, mentally ill, or living alone.
The heat wave extended to parts of Quebec that rarely experience such high temperatures this time of year, including Rimouski in the Bas-St-Laurent region, where the average daily high in June is 21°C. The town of roughly 50,000 people was expected to reach 32°C on Wednesday.
