London, Ont., has received its first heat warning of the year.
Environment Canada issued a heat warning for London and surrounding areas Monday morning, as “high daytime temperatures near 30 are expected (in the) afternoon.”
Monday’s daytime high temperature could break a record. Environment Canada is predicting a high of 31 C, coming in very close to 2012’s record of 31.2 C.
Gerald Chang, a meteorologist with Environment Canada, says the heat warning is expected to last until Wednesday.
“It’s going to be a few days of hot temperatures and high levels of humidity. This is quite a change from what we experienced earlier in May when we had snow and lake effect snow and cold temperatures.”
“This is certainly a strange time because we’re dealing with heat and we’re dealing with COVID-19.
“Normally, the recommendation is to go to shopping malls and libraries to cool down, but they may not be available because (of) social distancing.”
Recommendations for staying cool and avoiding getting heatstroke include “drinking plenty of water and avoiding any strenuous activities,” said Chang.
London’s chief medical officer of health, Dr. Chris Mackie and London’s mayor, Ed Holder both put out a reminder to check-in with the elderly during this hot and humid period.
“Stay in touch with them, and if they are struggling, call the appropriate authorities for that,” said Holder.
According to Environment Canada, the temperature is expected to cool down by Thursday, but not by a lot.
Monday through Wednesday are all seeing highs of 31 C, and Thursday’s high is expected to be 25 C.
“As we head into the weekend, we can expect more season temperatures. For London, we can expect a daytime high of 22 C,” said Chang.
“This is a good reminder that there could be more heatwaves to come for the rest of the season and into summer.”