Warm weather melts records across province

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This article was published 18/09/2019 (2361 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s not just leaves beginning to fall in Winnipeg and across the province — decades-long temperature records have also fell.

Environment Canada says 33 temperature records have fallen this week across the province, some for high temperatures during the day while most others were for the highest low temperatures recorded overnight.

Winnipeg’s low temperature on Tuesday overnight bottomed out at 21.3 C, besting an overnight-low record set in 1946 of 17.8 C.

Sara Hoffman, an Environment Canada meteorologist, said new temperature records were caused by a ridge of warm air which hung over Manitoba and Saskatchewan on Monday, Tuesday and into Wednesday.

“Winnipeg’s record was the most notable, but there were 23 other high-minimum-temperature records set,” Hoffman said on Wednesday. “Winnipeg, for this time of year, the normal daytime high is 17 C and the normal low overnight is 5 C.”

The other 23 communities that set high minimum temperatures overnight include: The Pas, which at 15.8 C was higher than 2002’s 11.6 C; Brandon’s 14.7 C higher than the 12.8 C set in 1940; Steinbach with 21 C beating the 15.8 C set in 2002; Thompson reaching 13.4 C to beat the 10.5 C set in 1987; and Gimli’s 18.6 C beating the 16.1 C it reached in 1946. The other 10 communities that set high-temperature records on Tuesday include: Churchill, which reached 24.9 C, beating the 23.3 C set in 1940; and Dauphin, which reached 33 C to beat the 32 C set in 1989.

Hoffman also said the temperature in Prince Albert, Sask., of 30.8 C on Monday was the warmest day it has had this year.

But all good things have to come to an end and Hoffman said that already on Wednesday there was a cold front east and north of Winnipeg causing thunderstorms and, by Friday and Saturday, there will be rain and cooler temperatures here.

Meanwhile, while Winnipeggers are being bugged by an increase in wasps, it’s not due to the weather now, but the conditions they lived through last winter. Taz Stuart, entomologist and director of technical operations with Poulin’s Pest Control, said wasps are busy trying to find food, and many times, it is in the hands of Winnipeggers or close by.

“Their food comes from flowers and that natural food source is disappearing,” Stuart said. “They are going for sugar and at this time, wasps become more aggressive to get it.”

Stuart said many more queen wasps than usual were able to find hiding spots to survive over winter and create new hives.

“They were able to find places, like a crack or crevice, to get out of the wind — it’s the wind that kills them, not the cold,” he said. “There are more this year than last year, for sure. The number of calls we are getting is higher this year than last.”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca