Warm end-of-winter weather breaks temperature records in parts of Alberta

In a twist of irony, Environment and Climate Change Canada posted a summary about the number of warm weather records set in Alberta as the season shifts from winter to spring.

In a post on its website Tuesday, the weather agency said preliminary information indicates two dozen weather stations in the province tied or set new records for the warmest temperatures ever seen on March 18 since such records have been tracked.

ECCC noted the data looking at temperatures on Monday may contain unofficial information and that the summary does not “constitute a complete or final report.”

Global Edmonton weather specialist Phil Darlington said Alberta was “basking under a nice ridge from the west late last week which set up the entire province for those well-above-normal daytime highs and overnight lows.”

“Not that breaking daily high and low records is that out of the ordinary when we see a setup like the one we had, but notably some of the broken records are about 100 years old, and some are from just a few years ago,” he said.

The warm weather on Monday was followed by a somewhat abrupt drop in temperatures in much of the province, while some areas in Alberta were being warned to expect up to 25 cm of snow to fall this week.

“We saw the heat from that ridge quickly defeated as a cold front slid south over Monday and Tuesday; that cold shoe is not coming off the other foot anytime soon,” Darlington said.

Below is a list of the March 18 records that were tied or set on Monday.

Athabasca area

Tied the record of 16.1 C set in 1910

Banff area

Set a new record of 15.8 C
Old record of 13.9 C was set in 1928

Barrhead area

Set a new record of 16.4 C
Old record of 15.0 C was set in 1928

Beaverlodge area

Set a new record of 15.1 C
Old record of 13.3 C was set in 1928

Bow Valley Provincial Park area

Set a new record of 17.9 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1960

Breton area

Set a new record of 17.0 C
Old record of 14.1 C was set in 2019

Brooks area

Set a new record of 19.0 C
Old record of 18.5 C was set in 2021

Cardston area

Set a new record of 19.8 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1946

Clareshom area

Set a new record of 19.3 C
Old record of 17.9 C was set in 2021

Cold Lake area

Set a new record of 14.3 C
Old record of 14.0 C was set in 2021

Crowsnest area

Set a new record of 16.3 C
Old record of 13.9 C was set in 1972

Edmonton International Airport area

Set a new record of 16.0 C
Old record of 14.1 C was set in 2021

Elk Island National Park area

Set a new record of 14.0 C
Old record of 13.5 C was set in 2021

Grande Prairie area

Set a new record of 15.4 C
Old record of 12.5 C was set in 1990

Highvale area

Set a new record of 16.2 C
Old record of 15.2 C was set in 2021

Jasper area

Set a new record of 18.1 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1947

Lethbridge area

Set a new record of 19.7 C
Old record of 18.5 C was set in 2021

Lloydminster area

Set a new record of 13.2 C
Old record of 11.8 C was set in 2021

Lac La Biche area

Set a new record of 14.4 C
Old record of 11.8 C was set in 2001

Milk River area

Set a new record of 19.8 C
Old record of 18.2 C was set in 2017

Nordegg area

Set a new record of 18.8 C
Old record of 16.6 C was set in 2019

Pincher Creek area

Set a new record of 19.4 C
Old record of 16.7 C was set in 1946

Vegreville area

Set a new record of 15.3 C
Old record of 14.8 C was set in 2021

Waterton Lakes National Park area

Set a new record of 17.6 C
Old record of 14.6 C was set in 2021

1:44 Hundreds of Calgarians enjoy the warm weather for St. Patrick’s Day

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