After a few breaks in the heat, a sweltering weekend is expected in the London, Ont., region and an extended heat warning from the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) is now in effect.
Environment Canada has also issued a heat warning for London and Middlesex and much of southern Ontario ahead of the sweltering highs.
The health unit’s heat warning came into effect Friday and ends on Monday, according to the MLHU.
Health officials also issued a heat alert this past Wednesday, as the temperature was initially anticipated to climb to 31 C, feeling like 37 C. Environment Canada ended up recording a high of 28.9 C on July 15.
Forecasters with the national weather service are calling for highs of 30 to 32 C from Friday to Monday, not including the humidex.
It puts an end to the brief spell of cooler weather we’ve seen from July 11 to 14 and on July 16, that brought some minor relief following the 10 straight days of 30-plus-degree temperatures that began the month.
Global News Chief Meterologist Anthony Farnell said earlier this week that several days this weekend are expecting humidex values of 40 C.
He notes this hot weather pattern will also likely linger into next week, and possibly into much of August.
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“It’s going to be likely one of the hottest Julys that southwestern Ontario has seen on record, and that’s going back, in some cases, 90 or 100 years. So this is unusual, to say the least,” he said.
“There are no real cold days anywhere, probably from now till the end of the month.”
In a statement, the MLHU’s Randy Walker said people were being reminded to do what they could to protect themselves from the oppressive heat.
“We continue to recommend covering exposed skin, wearing a hat, drinking plenty of water,” he says, “but we’re also still in the midst of the pandemic so we also need to keep two metres apart and wear a mask when physical distancing is challenging.”
Unlike the heatwave we saw at the start of the month, which began in western Canada, moved to northern Ontario, and then came south, Farnell says the upcoming heat and humidity is making its way up from Texas and Oklahoma.
“There are going to be some afternoon and evening showers and thunderstorms — we could see that… this weekend and again next week. So it’s not going to be as dry a pattern as we’ve seen so far,” Farnell said.
“I do see this warm pattern lasting well into the month of August. A wildcard is always the hurricane season and it is still expected to be very active in the Atlantic. Some of those storms can actually throw some moisture all the way back here into Ontario.
The average high for this time of year is around 26.5 C, according to Environment Canada.
— with files from Global News’ Jacquelyn LeBel.
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