Kamloops’ wettest month of the year brings one-third of average precipitation

“It certainly cooled off more towards averages, but to offset some of the warmer periods, you need much cooler temperatures and overnight lows,” Environment Canada Meteorologist Terri Lang told CFJC Today. “Some millimetres of rain were recorded but not enough to make up the deficit that we saw earlier on in the month.”

The seasonal outlook from Environment Canada indicates a warmer-than-normal summer for the Kamloops area. However, forecasting precipitation for the season is a coin flip.

“Our skill at forecasting longer-range precipitation trends, especially in the summer, not so great,” Lang says. “The nature of the precipitation in the summer is showers and thundershowers. If you get underneath one, you’re good to go. If you’re not, then you really miss out.

“There’s a lot of feedback systems that, once you come out of a wet spring, that leads to more thundershowers and showers because there’s a lot of moisture in the ground. It’s the same with dryness. If you’re coming out of a dry spring, there’s not a lot of moisture in the ground to help develop more showers and thundershowers to give you more rain.”

Throughout the summer, residents in the Kamloops area are encouraged to hydrate and not overexpose themselves to the sun, and to go indoors when they hear thunder.

“Most of the injuries and fatalities from lightning actually occur before the storm hits and after the storm hits, not during the storm,” Lang says. “Taking those precautions; getting off the lakes when they see storms approaching, just because the winds can be so gusty ahead of thunderstorms.”

by Aaron Schulze

Kamloops’ wettest month of the year brings one-third of average precipitation

Our Community