It wasn’t hard to break a sweat this past weekend when Nanaimo broke a single-day heat record that had stood for 122 years.
On Sunday, June 8, Nanaimo's high temperature peaked at 31.7 C, breaking the previous June 8 record of 30.6 C set in 1903.
The thermometer reading was just one of numerous record-breaking high temperature records that spiked on Vancouver Island and across the province that day.
Christy Climenhaga, a scientist with Environment and Climate Change Canada, pinned the blame on a ridge of high pressure that formed over the region.
“What we’ve been seeing over much of B.C., including the Nanaimo area, is a ridge of high pressure bringing very high temperatures to the region – our first really prolonged heat event of the season and very, very warm temperatures seen, not only in Nanaimo, but across the interior of B.C. too … So, [it was] a very old record falling yesterday with those hot temperatures. ”
Saturday, June 7, was steamy too with a high of 28.4 C, which was hot, but not enough to topple the previous daily record of 30.6 C set in 1948.
Environment and Climate Change Canada noted other central Island communities that shattered high temperature records on Sunday. The Qualicum Beach area set a new record at 29.8 C, beating the 26.8 C record set in 2024, and the Malahat hit a record 28.8 C, replacing 27.4 C set in 1995.
Those who aren’t fans of the heat will get some relief throughout the coming week.
Climenhaga said Monday, June 9, would peak at about 29 C, and temperatures will drop back into the more normal range for the week with highs of about 19 C and lows around 10 C.
The rest of June into early July could see higher-than-normal temperatures, she said, and the trend is expected to continue into August.
“Looking at the next month, it’s a little bit of a split focus in B.C.,” Climenhaga said. “The southern part of B.C., including the Nanaimo area, but southern parts of Vancouver Island and into the Lower Mainland and the southern Interior, we’re still picking up that warmer-than-normal trend for the month of June. That doesn’t mean that every day’s going to be hot, but there’s a better chance of more of those warmer-than-normal days than cooler-than-normal days.”
