Ottawa could see record-breaking rainfall on Wednesday, as the remnants of Hurricane Beryl move through the region.
Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement for Ottawa, calling for 25 to 50 mm of rain on Wednesday and Thursday. A rainfall warning has been issued for the Kingston, Brockville and Cornwall areas, calling for up to 80 mm of rain.
“Heavy rainfall associated with the remnants of Hurricane Beryl may affect portions of central and eastern Ontario beginning Wednesday, and may persist into Thursday,” the weather agency said in a statement.
“At this point, the heaviest rain is expected to remain south of the region where rainfall warnings have been issued. If the weather system tracks farther north, warnings may need to be extended accordingly.”
The weather forecast calls for rain at times heavy beginning late in the morning. Rainfall amounts of 15 to 25 mm of rain are expected during the day, with periods of rain continuing at night and into Thursday.
“This is about half-a-month’s worth of rain,” David Phillips, Environment Canada senior climatologist, told CTV News Ottawa on Tuesday.
“I think the problem in the Ottawa area is for the last three months, you’ve had a lot of rain. The grass is so green, the vegetation is so lush, you don’t need rain and here we are about to get 40-50 mm of rain essentially on Wednesday and maybe lingering into Thursday.”
The record for greatest rainfall on July 10 in Ottawa is 27 mm, set back in 1989.
Ottawa received 47.2 mm of rain on July 6.
Environment Canada’s forecast calls for partly cloudy tonight with a 40 per cent chance of showers. Low 19 C.
Rain at times heavy beginning late Wednesday morning. Risk of a thunderstorm in the afternoon. High 22 C.
Periods of rain continuing on Thursday. High 24 C.
Friday will be cloudy. High 28 C.
The outlook for Saturday calls for mainly sunny. High 29 C.
Rainfall warning
A rainfall warning has been issued for several areas of eastern Ontario.
Environment Canada says the Kingston, Brockville, Cornwall and Prescott areas could see up to 80 mm of rain on Wednesday and Thursday.
“Heavy rainfall associated with the remnants of Hurricane Beryl will affect portions of eastern Ontario Wednesday into Thursday,” Environment Canada said.
“Although confidence in the exact track of the weather system remains somewhat uncertain, these type of systems in the past have given very high rainfall rates in torrential downpours. Rainfall amounts will likely be highly variable across the region, and some areas may receive in excess of 80 mm, particularly for areas close to the St. Lawrence River.”