July was cookin’ with temperatures averaging 2.5 degrees warmer than usual.
The month was the hottest July on record since 2007, and with only 11 millimetres (mm) of measurable rain, it was also the driest July in seven years.
Continued high pressure brought arid and very warm conditions, with 23 of the 31 days reaching temperatures exceeding 30 degrees, according to Ron Lakeman, forecaster for the Southeast Fire Centre.
Canada Day kicked off the month with sun-filled celebrations in Greater Trail, and things only heated up from there with a new record temperature of 37.3 C set on Jul. 16.
The hottest day was Jul. 29, when the mercury rose to 38.8 C, though the record high stands at 39.9 C, recorded on Jul. 30, 11 years ago.
Most of the hottest daily temperature records during July were set in 1985, 1994, 2003 and 2007, noted Lakeman, mentioning that July 2007 remains the warmest on record.
Overall rainfall for the month was 23 per cent less the usual precipitation level of 48 mm, he added.
The only notable precipitation during the month was on Aug. 23 when a sudden and severe thunderstorm rolled into the region, knocking over trees and downing power lines while dousing the area with about 8 mm of rain.
But the driest July on record remains the seventh month in 1985 when only a trace amount of rain fell.