In a twist of irony, Environment and Climate Change Canada posted a summary about the number of warm weather records set in Alberta as the season shifts from winter to spring.
In a post on its website Tuesday, the weather agency said preliminary information indicates two dozen weather stations in the province tied or set new records for the warmest temperatures ever seen on March 18 since such records have been tracked.
ECCC noted the data looking at temperatures on Monday may contain unofficial information and that the summary does not “constitute a complete or final report.”
Global Edmonton weather specialist Phil Darlington said Alberta was “basking under a nice ridge from the west late last week which set up the entire province for those well-above-normal daytime highs and overnight lows.”
“Not that breaking daily high and low records is that out of the ordinary when we see a setup like the one we had, but notably some of the broken records are about 100 years old, and some are from just a few years ago,” he said.
The warm weather on Monday was followed by a somewhat abrupt drop in temperatures in much of the province, while some areas in Alberta were being warned to expect up to 25 cm of snow to fall this week.
“We saw the heat from that ridge quickly defeated as a cold front slid south over Monday and Tuesday; that cold shoe is not coming off the other foot anytime soon,” Darlington said.
Below is a list of the March 18 records that were tied or set on Monday.
Athabasca area
Tied the record of 16.1 C set in 1910
Banff area
Set a new record of 15.8 C
Old record of 13.9 C was set in 1928
Barrhead area
Set a new record of 16.4 C
Old record of 15.0 C was set in 1928
Beaverlodge area
Set a new record of 15.1 C
Old record of 13.3 C was set in 1928
Bow Valley Provincial Park area
Set a new record of 17.9 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1960
Breton area
Set a new record of 17.0 C
Old record of 14.1 C was set in 2019
Brooks area
Set a new record of 19.0 C
Old record of 18.5 C was set in 2021
Cardston area
Set a new record of 19.8 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1946
Clareshom area
Set a new record of 19.3 C
Old record of 17.9 C was set in 2021
Cold Lake area
Set a new record of 14.3 C
Old record of 14.0 C was set in 2021
Crowsnest area
Set a new record of 16.3 C
Old record of 13.9 C was set in 1972
Edmonton International Airport area
Set a new record of 16.0 C
Old record of 14.1 C was set in 2021
Elk Island National Park area
Set a new record of 14.0 C
Old record of 13.5 C was set in 2021
Grande Prairie area
Set a new record of 15.4 C
Old record of 12.5 C was set in 1990
Highvale area
Set a new record of 16.2 C
Old record of 15.2 C was set in 2021
Jasper area
Set a new record of 18.1 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1947
Lethbridge area
Set a new record of 19.7 C
Old record of 18.5 C was set in 2021
Lloydminster area
Set a new record of 13.2 C
Old record of 11.8 C was set in 2021
Lac La Biche area
Set a new record of 14.4 C
Old record of 11.8 C was set in 2001
Milk River area
Set a new record of 19.8 C
Old record of 18.2 C was set in 2017
Nordegg area
Set a new record of 18.8 C
Old record of 16.6 C was set in 2019
Pincher Creek area
Set a new record of 19.4 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1946
Vegreville area
Set a new record of 15.3 C
Old record of 14.8 C was set in 2021
Waterton Lakes National Park area
Set a new record of 17.6 C
Old record of 14.6 C was set in 2021