Heat records were shattered across British Columbia this week, with many communities marking their warmest June 23 in decades. One region—the Powell River area on the Sunshine Coast—surpassed a 100-year-old high-temperature record when it hit 31.6 C on Tuesday, outdoing the old record of 28.9 C set in 1926, according to data released by Environment and Climate Change Canada. In total, 20 new heat records were set while one community, Chetwynd, tied its previous high-temperate record for the date. The warmest new record was set in the Squamish area, where the mercury reached 34.1 C, while other communities also achieved the 34 C benchmark. The records fell as the province prepares to mark the fifth anniversary of the deadly 2021 heat dome this week. The extreme heat wave contributed to more than 600 deaths, according to a provincial coroner’s report, as temperatures soared above 40 C for several days. The full list of heat records broken on Tuesday follows: Environment Canada says the records are preliminary and the exact temperature data can be revised when a final report is compiled.
