A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued for the Central and South Okanagan, plus the Boundary region, in B.C.’s Southern Interior.
Sent out at 1:31 p.m., the weather alert says conditions are favourable for the development of severe thunderstorms that may be capable of producing large hail and heavy rain.
“These thunderstorms are likely to develop over the ridgetops and may move across highways and recreational areas east of the Okanagan Valley through the Monashee mountains, including Highway 33 from Kelowna to Rock Creek, Highway 97 and Highway 3 from Manning Park to Keremeos,” said Environment Canada.
The national weather agency says severe thunderstorm watches are issued when atmospheric conditions are favourable for the development of thunderstorms that could produce one or more of the following: large hail, damaging winds or torrential rainfall.
At 2:38 p.m., Environment Canada said it was tracking a line of severe thunderstorms capable of producing pea to dime-size hail and heavy rain.
The line stretches from Big White Ski Resort to Highway 33, 16 km south of the junction of McCulloch and Highway 33.
The severe thunderstorm watch was sent out around two hours after Environment Canada cancelled a hot weather alert for the Okanagan that had been in place since last week.
This week’s forecast for the Okanagan will see a high of 32 C on Tuesday, with Wednesday and Thursday seeing highs of 30 C. For Friday, the mercury is projected to reach 33 C.
While the alert may be currently over for the Okanagan, it’s still in place for Kamloops and the Fraser Canyon, where temperatures are expected to be between 32 and 34 C.