Penticton earns hottest day recorded in December for BC

Photo: Casey Richardson

Sun hit the beach at Okanagan Lake as warm temperatures spread throughout on Wednesday

It felt like warm spring day on the meteorological first day of winter in Penticton, as temperatures rose to a balmy 22.5 C.

That unseasonably high temperature was enough to break a record for the province of B.C.

"For sure we had the hottest ever BC day in December," Environment Canada meteorologist Doug Lundquist explained.

The temperature also may be warm enough to tie for the warmest December day for the entire country, but Lundquist said that this is still being verified.

"I knew we would break the British Columbia temp of the all time... But I didn't realize we'd come that close to breaking it for the entire country."

If so, Penticton would tie with Hamilton, Ontario for hottest ever December day for Canada, which was reached for them on Dec. 3, 1982.

Record-breaking temperatures were reached before breakfast for many places in the Okanagan on the first day of December.

"We had an atmospheric river originating near the Philippines. So it was coming from really topical location and much further across the ocean. So it had a long stretch over the really warm ocean before it got to B.C.," Lundquist said.

But the outlook for the rest for the coming weeks dips back down into lower temperatures.

"Prepare yourself to go back to winter."