Ottawa reached a high of 31 degrees at 3 p.m. yesterday, surpassing a 57-year-old temperature record.
Environment Canada released a special weather statement for Ottawa and the surrounding area, calling June 5 a “one-day heat event.”
Previously the highest temperature was 30.6, yesterday’s heat broke it by 0.4 C.
When factoring in the humidex, the temperature felt like 36 C in the National Capital Region, data from the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport shows.
According to Environment Canada, June 5 has an average high of 22.5 C and average low of 11.3 C. Average temperatures were calculated based on weather data collected from 1939 to 2011.
The Climate Atlas of Canada expects a jump in the number of 30 C days for the nation’s capital.
There were 13.5 days where the temperature was above 30 C from 1976 to 2005 according to the Climate Atlas of Canada. It predicts this will rise to 31.4 days — up 17.9 — due to the warming of the planet.