The Moose Jaw area was on track to shatter some weather records over the weekend; however, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada, we fell just a bit short.
The city peaked at a sweltering 29.3° on Saturday, and 28.9° on Sunday, and while we were well above the normal maximum for this time of year, we were a full 2.3 and 3.9° short of the current records of 31.6° and 32.8° set back in 1998.
The heat will continue today, with a forecast high of 29°, although according to Warning Preparedness Meteorologist, Danielle Dejardins, we are lucky to not be setting any records.
“Fun fact, you won’t be hitting any records today, that’s for sure. The previous record is 37.2° for today, believe it or not,” she explained.
While we may have missed out on breaking any records, it was a different story for our neighbours to the south and southeast.
Coronach eclipsed their previous record of 28.3° set back in 1977 by 2.7°, topping out at a high of 31° on Saturday. Estevan’s record of 28.3°, also set back in 1977, was beaten with a daily high of 32.9°.
Yorkton also set a new record, with the mercury climbing to 29.5°, over 2° over the existing record of 27.4°.
Coronach continued the record-breaking trend on Sunday, reaching 30.2° and Rockglen joined the party, peaking at a high of 28.3° to set a new all-time high for May 11.
Dejardins noted that the unseasonable warmth is set to give way to more normal temperatures in the near future.
“(It’s) another warm day today and a little bit more moderate tomorrow, but kind of mid-week and onward. We're looking at daytime highs that are at, or even just below normal for this time of year. So, temperatures into the mid to upper teens,” Desjardins said.
“There could be some thunderstorm activity tonight, but it's pretty spotty. I'm not confident that it it'll hit (Moose Jaw), but there's still a chance.”
She explained that Wednesday will bring the best chance for some much-needed precipitation for Moose Jaw and the surrounding areas.
“Wednesday afternoon into the overnight period is the best chance for the Moose Jaw area to see some precipitation. One of the models is showing (a system) kind of tracking a little bit further east of you guys, but if you do get it, it'll be some decent precipitation.”
The system in question is a Colorado low, set to cross much of southern Saskatchewan, bringing some relief to the near drought conditions being faced throughout the region.
She said that an added benefit of the precipitation is a potentially reduced fire risk for those looking to make the most of the favourable conditions in the forecast for the upcoming long weekend.