Break out the shorts and Tshirts because a springtime warm spell is headed for the Okanagan and Shuswap.
Environment Canada says a “week-long, above-seasonal event” will hit the region starting Friday, April 28, with temperatures this weekend expected to reach between 25 C to 27 C in Kelowna, Vernon, Penticton and Salmon Arm.
“It’s going to be above-seasonal for the first time in quite a while,” said Armel Castellan, a meteorologist at Environment and Climate Change Canada.
On Saturday, April 29, the federal agency forecasts region-wide highs of 27 C.
In 1926, on the same day, Penticton set its all-time daily high by reaching a temperature of 29.4 C.
“You’re not going to necessarily be breaking records but we’re not going to be far from it,” Castellan said.
The Okanagan only experienced three days this month of above-seasonal temperatures, from April 7 to 9, according to Environment Canada.
The average high for this time of year is 17 degrees, so if you hit 27 C, you’ll be a full 10 C above the seasonal average,” Castellan said. “That’s fairly substantial.”
Castellan says a potential La Niña “hangover” has resulted in cooler temperatures lingering from the wintertime.
La Niña refers to the cooler-than-normal atmospheric phenomenon seen B.C.-wide for the last couple of years. That trend has ended, as of this spring.
The meteorologist says that temperatures haven’t consistently stayed above average in Kelowna, Vernon and Penticton for at least two months.
Overnight lows are also set for a “notable” jump, starting as early as Wednesday, April 26.
“The average low for this time of year is 4 C,” Castellan said. “From this Friday night into Saturday, we may only go down as low as double-digits to 10 C and that’s saying a lot.”
Although this weekend (April 28 to 30) features sunny skies and temperatures above 25 C, Castellan says those across the region will experience a downward transition down to just a “couple degrees above seasonal.”
It’s a shift consistent with Environment Canada’s month-long projections for May.
Castellan says there’s a 50 to 60 per cent chance communities across the Okanagan experience “above-seasonal” temperatures through May.
“Right now, it looks like there will be a warmer signature for May,” the meteorologist said.
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