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B.C. weather: Month of May was warmer, drier than normal for most of province

Click to play video: 'Record hot, dry month of May in B.C. with trend to continue'
Record hot, dry month of May in B.C. with trend to continue
WATCH: It has been a record-breaking hot, dry month of May in B.C., and the trend is expected to continue at least into next week. – May 31, 2023

It was a warmer-than-normal May across British Columbia, with some regions also receiving less than half their monthly rainfall totals.

On Thursday, Environment Canada released its data for May, and 16 locations recorded their warmest monthly totals.

For example, Victoria was 2.8 degrees above normal, going from its mean temperature of 12.1 C to 14.9 C.

Click to play video: 'Kelowna Weather Forecast: May 31'
Kelowna Weather Forecast: May 31

Victoria (2.2 degrees above normal), Nanaimo (3.2), Penticton (3.6) Comox (3.7), Kelowna (4.1), Vernon (4.8), Wiliams Lake (4.8) Chetwynd (5.0) and Fort St. John (5.1) were also among the 16 communities that set new monthly records.

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Vancouver, meanwhile, recorded its second warmest May, 2.2 degrees above normal, as it went from 12.8 C to 15.0 C.

Also, as noted, the majority of the province was drier than normal.

Smithers received just 21 per cent of its normal monthly rainfall, receiving eight millimetres of precipitation instead of its regular amount of 38.1 millimetres.

Vancouver had its ninth driest May, receiving just 25 per cent of its regular rain (16.1 mm instead of 65.0 mm), with Abbotsford having its fifth-driest May (28 per cent; 27.5 mm instead of 99.8 mm).

Click to play video: 'B.C. evening weather forecast: May 31'
B.C. evening weather forecast: May 31

Victoria received just 31 per cent of its regular rainfall (11.6 mm to 3.75 mm) while it was a mixed bag in the Okanagan. Kelowna was at 51 per cent (20.5 mm to 40.2 mm) while Penticton was at 120 per cent (47.2 mm to 39.3 mm).

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Williams Lake (101 per cent) and Chetwynd (129 per cent) were normal while Fort St. John (177 per cent) was above normal, though Fort Nelson was at 40 per cent.

Looking ahead, the national weather agency is forecasting temperatures to be five to 10 degrees above normal next week.

The South Coast is expecting to see temperatures around 30 C away from the water, while the Southern Interior will see 30 to 35 C.

The fire danger rating is high for the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island, but ranges from low to moderate to high in the Central and Southern Interior. North of Prince George, most of the province is rated as high or extreme.

Regarding campfires, only the Prince George fire centre has a ban in place.

Click to play video: 'Saskatoon morning weather outlook: Thursday, June 1'
Saskatoon morning weather outlook: Thursday, June 1

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