Average summer weather on way: Weather Network
Hot, sticky weather will be limited

YorkRegion.com
June 2, 2015
Chris Traber  

We in York Region can anticipate a pleasant summer with just enough rain and seasonal temperatures to make gardeners, farmers and vacationers happy.

That’s the prognosis for our June through August from Weather Network meteorologist Doug Gillham.

“It won’t be a summer that will be remembered for its heat,” the veteran weather forecaster said. “Hot, sticky humid weather will be limited. We cautiously suggest this summer will resemble last summer.”

Based on weather patterns and a plethora of environmental data, Gillham believes our nine municipalities will experience few days with temperatures above 30C. We can expect normal levels of precipitation — in the 80mm per month range.

That’s good news for people who work in agriculture or enjoy the outdoors, he said.

Rainfall, however, can be variable.

“A thunderstorm can drop 50mm on your town and the next community over gets none,” he said. “In terms of predicting rainfall, we can’t broad brush the whole region.”

It’s safe to say the region won’t experience a drought, he added.

While summer doesn’t officially begin until June 21, coinciding with Father’s Day, the network groups the three hottest months together. June will emerge with average highs in the 22C range and will spike to 26C in the latter half, he said. July and August should bring average daily highs between 26 and 27, but, after August 21, temperatures will begin to drop.

“There will be swings in temperature,” Gillham said. “We’ll have cool and hot days and it’ll all depend how they offset each other.

“While heat waves can be a problem, we shouldn’t be dealing with them on a regular basis.”

Nationally, this summer, we’re seeing two main weather stories appear, network chief meteorologist Chris Scott said. A hot and generally dry season is expected for Western Canada, while Central and Eastern Canada will experience a pleasant summer, with near to below normal temperatures and near to above normal precipitation forecasted, Scott said.

The network won’t foretell what we can expect for autumn and winter. Many weather experts say El Niño, the warm phase of the southern oscillation associated with a band of balmy Pacific Ocean water, will help create a mild winter.

“We say, not so fast,” Gillham said. “There are a lot of things to consider.”

Still, our summer promises to be hospitable for man, beast and all things horticultural.

“Hopefully all the warm weather will fall on the week of your vacation,” Gillham said.