Cars drive up Main Street as Whitehorse see's warmer then usual temperatures. Photo Courtesy of Macklen Linke/CKRW.
Whitehorse, YT – A new temperature record could be made this Friday as Whitehorse settles into a period of unusually warm weather this week.
Environment Canada forecasts 8 °C this Friday, which, if it comes to pass, would be the highest temperature recorded for the date since records began in 1940. The previous record for Jan 16 is 7.2°C set in 2014.
Meteorologist Ken Dosanjh says this weather isn’t unheard of for January, but it is unusual.
“We have seen temperatures in the high single digits before, like in 2013, 2014 and all the way back to the 1960s,” said Dosanjh. “It does happen, but it’s quite anomalous to see temperatures driving into the high single digits.”
Dosanjh says a Pacific High shifting north from off the coast of California is driving the warmth, pushing frigid Arctic air out of the Yukon. That warmth is expected to move west across Alaska, resulting in cooler temperatures in Whitehorse next week.
In the meantime, the warm weather is creating a melt-freeze cycle, which is creating slushy and icy conditions on the roads. According to a news release from the City of Whitehorse, city crews are working full force to keep roads safe.
“Residents can expect challenging conditions throughout the city’s transportation network,” reads the release. “Crews have been working diligently to remove snow from residential areas in recent days, and that work continues.”
