PG ten to eleven degrees warmer than normal for this time of year

It might not be shorts weather, but so far, the winter season in Prince George has been a mild one.

That trend is expected to continue for another seven to ten days where daytime highs are expected to stay at or above the freezing mark.

Environment Canada Meteorologist Lisa Erven spoke with MyPGNow.com.

“When we have these storm systems that approach from the southwest they tend to drag mild air up into the province of BC and that is why we have been seeing these elevated temperatures for really almost two months here.”

“Really we have seen elevated temperatures from late November – this is not a new pattern as this has been with us for quite a while and it is looking to stick around for the next week or ten days or so here.”

Today (Tuesday), the northern capital is forecasted to see a daytime high of plus five, which is a complete reversal from what the typical January day looks like.

“Really, this time period of the year we expect to see highs of around minus six so that’s ten and eleven degrees above normal for this time of year and the trend is looking similar for the rest of the week.”

Erven added it won’t be until the end of the month, where we see a shift in the pattern.

“As we get into the longer-range forecast, I am starting to see hints of a cooling trend as we get into the last week of January and perhaps looking a little bit more firm in the first week of February.”

During the month of December, the average temperature was -2.2 degrees, which also came as a pleasant surprise to many.

“Overall, we came in at five degrees above normal, which is massive. Usually, when you are averaging numbers over 30 or 31 days we see temperatures more in the range of one to two degrees above or below normal but as soon as we get in the mid-single digits that’s quite unusual.”

It was also dryer than expected last month in both PG and Quesnel where both communities saw 50 to 60 percent of normal precipitation levels.