You might want to stay indoors next to the air conditioner if you can later this week.
According to Environment Canada, the community will experience temperatures above 30 from Monday to Thursday.
This isn’t unique to Fort McMurray as a shift in the jet stream has created a ‘big dome of hot air’ above Alberta and British Columbia.
Meteorologist Alysa Pederson tells Mix News this isn’t entirely uncommon for the area.
“As we’re currently forecasting, we’re only sitting at four days above 30. The longest stretch we’ve had above 30 was actually just in 2015 where there were six days in a row.”
However, we could see a first on Wednesday.
The weather agency is forecasting the temperature to hit a high of 41.
Pederson says this would be the hottest day ever recorded in the community.
“The hottest every temperature that’s been recorded was during the heat wave from July 14 to 18 in 1941 and on the last day Fort McMurray hit 38.9.”
As for stretches of hot and cold temperatures, Pederson notes it’s likely they’ll start to become more common moving forward due to the warming climate.
Meanwhile, Environment Canada is recommending residents take extra precautions when going outside this week.
This includes drinking plenty of water, watching for signs of overheating, and just staying inside if possible.
