This winter may go down as one of the warmest ones in recent history.
On Wednesday, 13 daily temperature records were broken across British Columbia, with another 10 set on Thursday.
For example, Prince George reached a relatively balmy temperature of 8.7 C on Thursday, eclipsing the city’s old mark of 7.8 C set in 1919. The area’s historical average for December is -5 C to -12 C.
In an interview with Global News, a spokesperson with B.C.’s River Forecast Centre discussed the outlook of what a warm winter could mean come spring.
The River Forecast Centre (RFC) uses automated snow weather stations to measure snowpack levels. Currently, in the Southern Interior, the snowpack level is well below the seasonal average.
“Compared to last year (Jan. 1, 2022), the Okanagan was near normal and it was one of the healthiest snow packs in the province,” said RFC spokesperson Jonathan Boyd. “Now it’s one of the lowest and it’s quite a consistent trend throughout the South Interior.
“What can often happen in an El Nino year is that we get relatively warm spring temperatures in March and April.
“If we have a low snowpack continue into those months, and then warm temperatures for an early snow melt, then we may be out of snow quite early.”
West Kelowna’s fire chief, Jason Brolund, has seen firsthand the impacts that extended periods of dry, warm weather can have.
“I’m not a climatologist, I’m not a scientist in the area of climate change,” Brolund told Global News.
‘But I know that we’re having hotter summers, we’re having extended periods where the temperature is above 30 Celsius, and the humidity is below 30 per cent.”
Brolund says while he isn’t too worried about the lack of precipitation and the above-seasonal temperatures this winter just yet, he’s urging residents to be proactive and prepare themselves before it’s too late.
“If this dry weather persists into spring, it’s a reminder for people that we can’t control the weather but we can control the things around our home,” he said.
“Follow those Fire Smart principles by creating defensible space around your home, maybe replacing a cedar shake roof or taking down some trees.”