Skip to content

Okanagan-Shuswap weather heating up as restrictions ease

Kelowna is expected to hit a high of 24 degrees on Saturday
21487796_web1_200514-KCN-May-Weather-KEYWxzxORD_1
The view from the top off Dilworth Mountain in Kelowna, B.C. (Photo - Tourism Kelowna)

As B.C. forges ahead with plans to gradually re-open, during the pandemic, temperatures are also heating up.

What better time to get outside, one of the places provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said people should feel comfortable going both for physical and mental health.

According to Environment Canada meteorologist Doug Lundquist, there will be a ridge of high pressures, mainly centred along the coast of B.C., which will make for some very hot weather that will spill into the interior.

Temperatures are expected to gradually warm up into the weekend, peaking at the mid to high 20s in the Okanagan. High freezing levels are also expected to warm up the mountainside and melt more of the snow at higher altitudes.

“It’s going to be dry now at least until Monday,” said Lunquist. “It’s a beautiful pattern. My advice is to stay safe from UV but to get out and get some vitamin D and fresh air, of course keeping the proper physical distancing plan. We really should enjoy this weather.”

READ MORE: Kelowna S.H.A.R.E Society seeking community assistance amid COVID-19

Looking ahead to next week, Lundquist said temperatures will return to normal levels for this time of year, which is the Okanagan’s upper-low season in mid-May. The general pattern is cooler for next week, with temperatures in the low-to-mid 20s. Showers are also expected at some point which would bring temperatures down to the teens.

“It is also normal to get into that monsoon-wet season in mid-May to early June. That will be the wettest part of summer,” he explained.

Although, Lundquist said the Okanagan has had an unusual amount of rain for this early in May. In the Okanagan between 20 and 30 mm of rain fell across the region in the last four days.

Kelowna:

Vernon:

Salmon Arm:

Penticton:

READ MORE: PHOTOS: Kelowna residents frustrated after Mill Creek floods homes


Daniel Taylor
Reporter, Kelowna Capital News
Follow me on Twitter