A meteorologist says the hottest day of this current heat wave might now be behind us.
Rose Carlsen with Environment Canada says 24 communities in Manitoba broke temperature records on Thursday as the mercury climbed into the mid-30s. The temperature in Steinbach peaked at 31.7 degrees, short of the record 33.5 degrees, however, the following communities all broke records Thursday, according to Environment Canada:
- Altona: New record of 34.9, breaking the previous record of 34.0 set in 1986.
- Berens River: New record of 30.8, surpassing the old record of 30.1 set in 1986.
- Brandon: New record of 36.0, breaking the previous record of 33.3 set in 1901.
- Carberry: New record of 36.0, topping the old record of 33.0 set in 1986.
- Carman: New record of 35.5, surpassing the previous record of 35.0 set in 1919.
- Dauphin: New record of 37.0, breaking the old record of 35.6 set in 1919.
- Deerwood: New record of 35.3, exceeding the previous record of 34.0 set in 1986.
- Dominion City: New record of 34.1, edging the old record of 34.0 set in 1986.
- Emerson: New record of 34.1, breaking the previous record of 34.0 set in 1986.
- Fisher Branch: New record of 34.5, surpassing the old record of 33.0 set in 1986.
- Gillam: New record of 30.4, breaking the previous record of 26.7 set in 1950.
- Grand Rapids: New record of 37.3, topping the old record of 32.5 set in 1986.
- Lynn Lake: New record of 31.0, surpassing the previous record of 29.5 set in 1995.
- McCreary: New record of 35.1, breaking the old record of 32.0 set in 1986.
- Melita: New record of 35.3, exceeding the previous record of 32.2 set in 1936.
- Morden: New record of 35.4, breaking the old record of 34.4 set in 1919.
- Oak Point: New record of 32.2, edging the previous record of 32.0 set in 1986.
- Pilot Mound: New record of 34.9, surpassing the old record of 32.1 set in 1986.
- Portage la Prairie: New record of 35.0, breaking the previous record of 33.9 set in 1919.
- Shoal Lake: New record of 34.6, topping the old record of 31.0 set in 1986.
- Swan River: New record of 36.6, surpassing the previous record of 33.5 set in 1986.
- The Pas: New record of 35.7, breaking the old record of 33.3 set in 1944.
- Thompson: New record of 32.2, edging the previous record of 32.1 set in 1986.
- Winkler: New record of 35.4, breaking the old record of 34.4 set in 1919.
Carlsen says the warmest area of Manitoba on Thursday was Grand Rapids, which is 438 kilometres north of Winnipeg. The temperature there hit 37.3 degrees.
"It looks like (Thursday) was likely going to be the hottest day of the whole stretch, but (Friday) is still looking to be quite warm," says Carlsen. "And then we're going to kind of gradually decrease through the weekend."
Environment Canada is calling for highs in Steinbach this weekend of 33 degrees on Friday, 30 degrees on Saturday, and 30 degrees on Sunday.
"Next week we'll start to get more into a little bit more comfortable upper-20s for highs," notes Carlsen.
According to Carlsen, the current Heat Warning in our province is for nearly all of Manitoba, except for the far north.
"The important thing is to pay attention to how you're feeling," she says. "It's easy to start to get dehydrated without realizing how dehydrated you are. As much as you can, try to limit your exposure to the heat. If you're in the heat, try to take action to control your temperature."
With files from Sylvia St. Cyr
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