The RCMP say a sweltering heat wave that has settled over Western Canada for several days is believed to be a contributing factor in the majority of 25 sudden-death calls the Mounties have responded to since Monday in Burnaby, B.C.
Cpl. Mike Kalanj said the calls relate to a single 24-hour period and the deaths are still under investigation. He said “many of the deceased” were seniors.
Temperatures in the Vancouver area reached just under 32 C Monday, but the humidity made it feel close to 40 C in areas that aren't near water, Environment Canada said.
The record-breaking heat wave could ease over parts of British Columbia, Yukon and the Northwest Territories by Wednesday, but any reprieve for the Prairie provinces is further off.
In a news release, Kalanj urged residents to check on their neighbours and family members.
“We are seeing this weather can be deadly for vulnerable members of our community, especially the elderly and those with underlying health issues,” he said in the statement.
Ingrid Jarrett, CEO of the B.C. Hotel Association, said residents in parts of the Lower Mainland, Victoria and the Okanagan region have been booking air-conditioned rooms so they can continue working and also get some sleep.
A lack of staff is the biggest challenge for hotels, motels and resorts, she said.
“So many hotels have to limit their occupancy and reservations that they can take because they simply don't have enough people working in order to clean the rooms,” said Jarrett, who did not yet have the latest occupancy numbers for this week.
Environment Canada said the “historic” weather system shattered 103 heat records across B.C., Alberta, Yukon and N.W.T. on Monday.
Those records include a new Canadian high temperature of 47.9 C set in Lytton, B.C., smashing the previous record of 46.6 set in the same village a day earlier.
Temperature records were also set in the Alberta communities of Jasper, Grande Prairie and Hendrickson Creek for a second day as the mercury hit the mid- to high-30s.
It was 38.1 C in the Nahanni Butte region of N.W.T., the highest temperature ever recorded in the territory, Environment Canada says in its weather summaries for Monday.
The weather office has also issued four heat warnings for regions along Manitoba's western boundary.
Forecasters warn extreme conditions will persist across the Prairies at least through this week and possibly into next.
As the sweltering system slides out of B.C., temperatures are expected to dip to more seasonal levels. The weather office is calling for a chance of lightning Wednesday night in the parched southern Interior. It's the same area where evacuation alerts were issued Monday because of a wildfire.
The BC Wildfire Service announced a provincewide campfire ban effective at noon Wednesday, as the fire risk across most of B.C. is rated at high to extreme. The ban, which also covers fireworks, torches and burn barrels, remains in effect until Oct. 15.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 29, 2021.
