Another dryer and very much warmer April
By Nelson Daily Staff
Weather Forecasters for the Southeast Fire Centre said March of 2016 was 1.5 degrees milder than normal.
April 2016 continued the spring trend as dryer and much warmer than average temperatures covered the Southern Interior says Ron Lakeman at the Southeast Fire Centre Weather Services.
“The total amount of precipitation (all rain) was only 54 percent of normal,” Lakeman said in the monthly weather synopsis.
“The mean monthly temperature was 3.4 degrees warmer than normal, making it the warmest April since the local climate records began in 1965. The previous warmest April was during 1980 with a mean temperature of 10.8 degrees.”
Lakeman said the cause of the increase in temperature was a upper ridge of high pressure which built over southern BC during the final few days of March held for mainly sunny skies and unseasonably warm temperatures during the initial three days of April.
The result saw record daily maximum temperatures of 23.7 and 21.6 degrees were set on April 1st and 3rd, respectively.
Lakeman said a few Pacific systems produced a few showers at times during the month, the more significant rain falling on the fourth of April and during the night of the 23rd.
However, the number of days in which measurable rain was recorded was four less than is average during April.
“Otherwise high pressure was the more dominant feature during the remainder of the month,” Lakeman said.
“Another three days of record breaking maximum temperatures were experienced on the 18th, 19th and 20th. The warmest temperature of the month (27.5 degrees) occurred during the afternoon of the 18th.”
The first week of May continues to be warm as temperatures are forecasted to range in the high 20s.
