How low can the temperature go in this cold snap?
The Monday morning sunshine wasn’t warming up Chilliwack too much on Dec. 27 as the mercury had dropped to -15 C, according to Roger Pannett, Chilliwack’s volunteer weather observer for Environment Canada.
That’s more than 20 below with the wind chill.
“Wow,” Pannett said in his roundup early Monday. “Previous low minimum of -14.4 C on December 27, 1968, was smashed by the record -16.4°C this morning!”
That was 16.4 C below normal with a wind chill of -26 C, so the temperature of -16.4 C was in fact the coldest temperature recorded in Chilliwack since -19 C on Nov. 27, 1985.
“Good to see the sunshine this morning, but temperature at 10 a.m still a bitter cold -15 C plus wind chill.”
Environment Canada says the cold is here to stay until at least Wednesday.
“Arctic outflow winds and low temperatures will combine to produce wind chill values near or below minus 20.”
The wind and temperatures will moderate somewhat by afternoon and tonight but wind chill values are still expected to be between minus 10 and 20.
“Stronger outflow and lower overnight temperatures are forecast for Tuesday night and Wednesday morning bringing wind chill values to near minus 20 again.”
The wind chill is expected to moderate Wednesday as temperatures rise.
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