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Unseasonably cold in the Okanagan-Shuswap

Tempeartures are about 4 C cooler than normal for this time of year
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A mix of Pacific moisture and air brought in from the North caused temperatures to dip and rain to dampen the Okanagan and Shuswap on Tuesday.

According to Armel Castellan with Environment Canada temperatures dropped about 10 C below seasonal normal, which is unusual for this time of year.

“The storm that came through the Interior mixed with the cold air mass made for a lot of precipitation in the region, making for snow in some areas like the Rogers Pass which saw 32 cm,” he explained.

RELATED: Colder weather predicted for Kelowna, snow for Coquihalla

In the Shuswap, 1.3 mm of rain fell on Tuesday, while the Okanagan received about 6.4 mm of rain.

The average rainfall for the Okanagan in October is about .29 mm.

Castellan says the Okanagan and Shuswap will see a drier trend over the next few days as temperatures start to climb.

“The temperatures are expected to drop again on Sunday and then rebound next week,” he said. “We will also see a few showers for the region on the weekend, but no snow is expected except for in the northern regions such as the Cariboo.”

This dip in temperature is not the normal for October and is about 4 C cooler than average for this time of year.

While snow is not expected in the Okanagan or Shuswap, Castellan says it is possible.

“The earliest the Shuswap has received snow in the past was 13.3 cm back on Oct. 16, 1996,” explained Castellan. “In the past the Shuswap has only seen snow on 18 days in October.”

For the Okanagan, the earliest Kelowna ever saw snow was 2.5 cm back on Oct. 4, 1903. Kelowna once saw snow fall on 20 days of October in one year.

Castellan claims the forecast should clear for around Oct. 13 or 14 before temperatures dip to seasonal normal.


@Jen_zee
jen.zielinski@bpdigital.ca

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Jen Zielinski

About the Author: Jen Zielinski

Graduated from the broadcast journalism program at BCIT. Also holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science and sociology from Thompson Rivers University.
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