January in Chilliwack was a fairly minimalist month in terms of winter weather.
There were only minimal temperature extremes, only two days of snow, and no precipitation records.
"Until mid-month a series of weak pacific frontal systems produced generally mild and damp weather conditions," according to Roger Pannett, volunteer weather observer for Environment and Climate Change Canada. "Rainfall was light, with only minimal snowflakes on Jan. 2."
After mid-month over the eastern Pacific, a system-blocking ridge of high pressure predominated.
Clear nights made way for a total of 17 frosty nights.
"That was the most since the 19 frosts recorded in January 2017, which preceded a cold and very snowy February 2017!" said Pannett.
It took until Jan. 19 to see the first killing frost, below two degrees Celsius occurred.
There were 319 killing frost free days compared to the average 263 days.
Temperature extremes for January were minimal. A mild 9.6°C (+5.2C) on January 9th and a moderate frost of -3.9C (-2.0C) on January 29th.
No temperature or precipitation records were observed in January.
With an unusual 13-day January dry spell it was the longest since the 15-day drought in January 1993.
With mean temperatures 1.9C above normal, it was the 8th consecutive January with above normal temperatures, based on the 1951-1980 averages.
It was also the 21st consecutive month with above normal temperatures. A record never previously observed since 1895.
On Jan. 31, in Chilliwack, T sum was at 106 compared to the 30-year average of 37.
Total rainfall was 59.5 millimetres in January, compared to 210.9 mm. Snowfall totalled 0.8 cm over two days of snow, while 52.8 cm fell over seven days for the 30-year average.