May was a wash, in terms of weather that is.
With the total amount of precipitation 163 per cent above normal, this May proved to be the wettest in 23 years, according to Ron Lakeman of the Southeast Fire Centre.
“It was another month of extremely variable weather,” said Lakeman in a month-end weather report. He said although it was the wettest May since 1990, the average temperature was only 1.3 degrees warmer than normal.
May 1 gave a hint that more winter was on the way, with a record low temperature of -4.7 C.
Lakeman said that is a new record minimum temperature, beating the previous -2.5 C, set from 2002 and in 2012.
The following week, conditions turned around with an upper ridge of high pressure bringing dry, sunny and unseasonably warm conditions.
During May’s second week, additional records were set, but this time with temperature highs.
Daily maximum temperatures of 29.4, 32.1 and 30.8 degrees were set on the 8, 10 and 11.
Conditions quickly reversed again as strong gusty winds (57 to 83 km/hr) and thundershowers ushered in cooler temperatures during the third week.
Heavy rain on May 21 and 22 set a record for the heaviest amount of rainfall ever recorded over a 24-hour period during May, said Lakeman. The two-day rainfall of almost 83 mm accounted for 74 per cent of the months total rainfall of 112 mm.
According to Chris Scott, director for The Weather Network, the “topsy-turvy” forecast isn’t going to let up until the end of June.
He said the weather should be more consistent starting next month (July), but until then, Canadians should monitor the forecasts for any surprise bouts of extreme weather before taking off on outdoor trips.