Any ice-cream truck driver or dog left in a vehicle can tell you: the heat is back. But don't call it a heat wave like we had in mid-July. It's more of a "heat event" if you ask the authorities at Environment Canada.
"(Temperatures) are definitely running above seasonal - about five degrees above our normal values for this time of year," said Allan Coldwells, Environment Canada meteorologist. "It could warm up a degree or two more over the next (four) days but we're probably not going to see record-breaking temperatures this time around. We don't have quite the amount of heat coming from the south as we did the last time."
Along with the hot, dry weather comes a ban on fires in the entire coastal region, just in time for the B.C. Day long weekend. The ban extends to all open fires in parks, campgrounds and Crown land and carries a $345 fine.
It's not just campfires that pose a risk though. Local fire crews have been kept busy putting out small grass fires, according to Mike Cairns, assistant fire chief with District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue.
The locations suggest they were ignited by lit cigarette butts being flicked out car windows, which can net careless smokers a $100 "flick it ticket."
The rising mercury is also no secret to the pets left in hot vehicles. The B.C. SPCA has been fielding hundreds of calls this summer, said spokeswoman Lorie Chortyk who encourages people to call the SPCA hotline at 1-855-622-7722 if they see an animal in distress.
But, with only 25 officers to investigate and enforce animal cruelty laws in the entire province, residents should also consider calling their local police if they see a dog suffering in the heat. If the vehicle is parked outside a nearby business, Chortyk recommends asking the manager to encourage customers to return to their vehicle if there's a pet inside. Also on the caution front for those seeking to cool off with a swim this weekend: Vancouver Coastal Health has warned swimmers to stay out of the water at Eagle Harbour after a routine test on Wednesday found E.coli bacteria counts at 240 per 100 millilitres of water. The safe limit for human contact is 200.
Coldwells is forecasting a slight drop in the temperatures over the weekend with a possible thunder shower late on Sunday. Then it's back to sunny conditions in the mid to high 20s for the first week of August.
UPDATE: As of Thursday afternoon, after North Shore News print deadline, Vancouver Coastal Health issued E.coli warnings for Ambleside, Dundarave and Sandy Cove.
