Has the weather felt unusually cold to you in B.C., considering how late it is in March?
Then it wouldn’t surprise you that several daily cold-weather records were broken in B.C. yesterday, including one that’s over 120 years old!
According to Environment and Climate Change Canada’s weather summary page, a cold weather record previously established on March 30, 1905, was broken in Tofino yesterday.
The previous record, which stood for 121 years, was a temperature of -2.2˚C. Yesterday, the temperature in Tofino hit -3.2˚C, a full degree colder than in 1905. Tofino records have been kept since 1896.
Seven other March 30 cold weather records were broken, though none quite as historic as the Tofino one.
Bella Bella tied a record of -3.3˚C, previously set in 2008. Records in the Bella Bella area have been kept since 1977.
The Burns Lake area was among the coldest spots in all of the province, as it saw a record-breaking temperature of -19.5˚C. The previous record, set in 2008, was -19˚C. Records in the area have been kept since 1949.
Over in Campbell River, the region saw a new temperature record of -4.6˚C, besting the previous one set in 1980. In Campbell River, records have been kept since 1980.
Chetwynd saw the coldest temperature in the province yesterday, reaching a new record of -19.9˚C, surpassing the 2020 record of -15.4˚C. Records have been kept since 1970.
Port Hardy saw a fairly old record broken. The previous record was set in 1958 when temperatures reached -2.8˚C. Yesterday, they reached -3.1˚C, and records have been kept since 1944.
The two remaining March 30 records that were broken include Squamish and Sechelt.
Sechelt saw a new record March 30 low of -2.2˚C, beating the previous record of -1.4˚C set in 2021. Records have been kept since 1956.
Finally, Squamish saw a new record of -3.4˚C, beating the old record of -2.2˚C set in 1968. Records have been kept since 1960.
It’s likely that we’ll see more hot and cold weather over the next couple of weeks, based on the ECCC forecast.
The forecast predicts daytime highs of close to 20˚C, with nighttime lows near freezing, hovering around 4˚C.
ECCC