The annual look back at the year 2020 in Chilliwack weather saw a continuing warming trend along with rainfall that was down slightly from the average.
The year 2020 started out wet and snowy, according to Roger Pannett, Chilliwack’s volunteer weather observer for Environment Canada
In January 2020, with rainfall 37 per cent above normal, he noted in his 2020 report, and snowfall 34 per cent above normal it was the wettest January since 2011 and the snowiest since 2012.
There were two 24-hour rainfall records. The first was on Jan. 31 at 65.2 millimetres and May 30 at 31.7 mm.
“However, for the eighth consecutive year precipitation totals were below the 30-year average.”
Rainfall was 14.75 per cent below normal but snowfall 102 per cent above normal.
“With mean temperatures for 2020 at +1.32 C above normal, it was the eighth consecutive year with mean temperature in excess of the 0.6 degrees C standard deviation, continuing the warming trend which started in 1986.”
Above average temperatures were recorded each month of the year, including five months with the “standard deviation” of +1.1 C to +1.4 C.
In the May to September period there were 13 hot days with maximum temperatures that sent the mercury above 30 C.
“It was the 19th consecutive year with well above the average seven hot days, a trend never previously observed,” Pannett said.
There was a total of 25 record-breaking high temperatures in 2020 with only six low temperature records.
Temperature extremes for 2020 were the record- breaking maximum temperature of 35.8 C (12.1 C above normal) on Aug. 16 and the minimum temperature of – 13.3 C (11.7 °C below normal) on Jan. 15.
In 2020 there were 203 frost free days compared to the average 216 days.
RELATED: A look at 2019 weather
RELATED: 2018 was hot and dry
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