Temperature records continue to fall across the province this week, with 21 areas in B.C. recording their hottest May 4 ever on Thursday. Kelowna broke a record that was set way back in 1900.
The high-pressure system has been bringing scorching hot temperatures across much of the province for the past week, and Thursday was no exception.
Across the Okanagan, new temperature records were broken Thursday in Kelowna, Vernon and Salmon Arm, while the Thompson region saw new records in Kamloops, Blue River, Cache Creek, Clearwater and Lytton.
The weather station at the Kelowna airport recorded a high of 30.2 C on Thursday, the first time temperatures have reached 30 C this year. The high broke the city's previous record for May 4, which was set in 1900.
Vernon recorded a high of 30.3 C, breaking its previous record of 27.5 C set in 1992. And nearby Salmon Arm also recorded its hottest May 4, with a temperature of 29.3 C, beating its previous record from 1946.
Kamloops also set a new record of 30.7 C, narrowly beating out the prior record set in 1944.
Cache Creek appears to have recorded the hottest place in Canada on Thursday, setting a new village record of 32.7 C. The village has been dealing with devastating flooding for several days, caused by rapid snowmelt due to the unseasonably hot temperatures.
Lytton, meanwhile, came close to Cache Creek's high, at 32.3 C on Thursday. The village remains devastated from the wildfire that tore through it back in late June 2021, when temperatures reached close to 50 C.
Temperatures are forecast to cool slightly in the Interior Friday and through the weekend, as rain is expected to fall in some areas. The Okanagan is currently under a severe thunderstorm watch Friday morning, and the River Forecast Centre has warned of possible widespread flooding across the Interior through the weekend.
The full list of records set across B.C. can be found online.
