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Beaches and boat launches in the tri-communities are flooded. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)
rising water

Heat warning in effect after days of wet weather

Jul 29, 2020 | 3:47 PM

Water levels in the La Ronge area continue to rise as the monthly average precipitation rate is well above normal.

According to Environment and Climate Change Canada Meteorologist Sara Hoffman, a low-pressure system over the weekend brought bands of rain and severe thunderstorms in the local forecast region. She said on July 25, 21.5 millimetres of rain fell while an additional 15.3 mm fell on the following day. That’s a total of 36.8 mm of rain over two days, but areas of North of La Ronge received up to 50 mm.

The normal amount of precipitation for La Ronge in July is 80.5 mm, but approximately 117 mm of rain has fallen as of July 29. Hoffman notes there is a chance of thunderstorms today and tomorrow.

“We will have our stats early next week in how July shaped up in comparison to normal,” she said.

La Ronge has also been under a heat warning since July 28 as a large, entrenched area of warm air from the United States moves into southwestern Alberta to northeastern Manitoba. While the warning could persist into tomorrow, Hoffman expects it to weaken and the temperature to drop.

She also explained the next couple of days will still bring above-normal temperatures, but the heat should increase again during the upcoming weekend and into next week. Hoffman recommends staying hydrated and spending time in the shade as much as possible.

“If you’ve got no air conditioning accessible to use, if there’s a building with air conditioning that you can get to, that’s great,” she said. “We want to remind folks COVID is still a very real issue everywhere in Canada and we need to respect social distancing and that sort of thing, even while we are trying to beat the heat.”

derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno