Harsh heat wave hits US and Canada, up to 14°C above average

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
14 May 2023 09:42

Cities such as Seattle "could end up having their first 90-degree days of the year” with heat advisories across the Western part of the US already in place by the National Weather Service.

A construction worker drinks water in Palm Springs, California, US on July 20, 2022. (Reuters)

The northwest coast of the US has been hit by a harsh heat wave, which will have temperatures going up to 14 degrees Celsius beyond the historic average.

As AccuWeather meteorologists explained, “The warmth, courtesy of a building area of high pressure over the western United States, will allow afternoon high temperatures to reach 15 to 25 degrees Fahrenheit (8 to 14 degrees Celsius) above historical averages from California to areas north into western Canada into the new week".

Cities such as Seattle “could end up having their first 90-degree days of the year” with heat advisories across the western part of the US already in place by the National Weather Service.

Environment Canada also “issued special heat statements in portions of Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan,” according to a statement.

Canada is already battling wildfires that have left 13,000 people forced to evacuate their homes as wildfires engulfed parts of Alberta, and as a result of a week of record hot temperatures, the rapid melting of snow triggered flooding across British Columbia.

Harsh heat wave hits US and Canada, up to 14C degrees above average

This comes as the US' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) stated that an El Niño event will form this month in the tropical Pacific Ocean this summer, accelerating climate change and changing global weather patterns.

The chances of an El Niño developing through July and persisting into the Northern Hemisphere winter are currently 82%, with the probability reaching 90% later this summer, NOAA found.

AccuWeather meteorologists continued to add that “the rising temperatures are a sudden pattern change across the region,” in a region “where temperatures had been largely below historical averages at the start of May.”

Meteorologist at AccuWeather, Mary Gilbert, expressed that it “will feel like Mother Nature flipped a switch as the jet stream bulges northward across the Western states.”

“From May 1-10 in Portland, all but three days featured temperatures at or below historical averages, which are in the upper 60s at this point,” the weather company noted.

“However, a period of exceptional warmth began Friday, as the mercury touched the 90-degree mark for the first time this year and broke the 1973 daily record of 87.”

“Record-challenging highs in the lower 90s are expected to persist right into Monday", it concluded.