Heat Wave Hits Ontario and Quebec: Environment Canada Issues Warning

Ontario and parts of Quebec are bracing for a “dangerously hot and humid” week ahead, with Environment Canada issuing a heat warning across these regions. The special weather alert indicates a prolonged heat event starting Monday, expected to persist until Thursday or Friday.

The warning encompasses a vast area from Windsor to Ottawa in Ontario, including the Greater Toronto Area, and extends to Moosonee. In Quebec, Montreal and Quebec City are also under alert. Daytime temperatures are forecasted to soar between 30 C and 35 C, with humidex values reaching a stifling 40 to 45.

Overnight offers little respite, with lows hovering around 20 C to 23 C and humidex values of 26 to 30. Proximity to the Great Lakes may provide some degree of cooling.

New Brunswick joins the heat wave on Tuesday, with Wednesday and Thursday predicted to experience temperatures between 30 C and 33 C, feeling like 40 C due to humidity.

Global News Meteorologist Anthony Farnell attributes the heat dome’s center over the northeast U.S., noting that the southern U.S. and Mexico’s hot spring conditions are now moving northward. He warns that the timing of this heat wave poses additional risks as schools are still in session and many public cooling facilities remain closed.

Farnell draws parallels between this heat dome and the record-breaking B.C. heat dome of June and July 2021 but assures that this week’s conditions will not reach those extremes. However, he emphasizes that such events are part of a “troubling trend” of more prolonged and intense heat waves exacerbated by climate change.

Some relief may come from isolated thunderstorms forming around the heat dome’s edge this week, offering temporary temperature drops but increasing humidity. More significant cooling is expected over the weekend as the heat dome weakens and a cold front moves through the Great Lakes towards the Maritimes.