Maritime October temperatures soar to record highs while snow falls in the west

Communities east of Alberta set record high temperatures for an Oct. 21 while Alberta itself contended with the first snowfall of the season in some areas.

Monday record highs

High temperature records were set in all three Maritime provinces on Monday.

Record high temperatures were also found in southern areas of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. The warmest temperature in the county on Monday, according to Environment Canada-monitored weather stations, was at Egbert, Ontario, which reached 26.4 degrees. In the Maritimes it was a two-way tie between Upper Stewiacke and Western Head, which both reached 22.5 degrees.

Calgary’s temperature fell to near -3 C in the afternoon with snow falling and accumulating. Observers reported two-to-six centimetres of snow around the city.

New daily high temperature records for an Oct. 21 set in the Maritimes on Monday. (Source: CTV News Atlantic)

What goes up must come down

The snowy October weather in Alberta was a result of a cold front and trough in the jet stream. That pattern will continue to move west-to-east across the country, lowering temperatures as it goes along.

Tuesday afternoon temperatures in Saskatchewan and Manitoba are expected to be mostly in the range of the low-to-mid single digits. Overnight low temperatures will fall to or below freezing. A mix of showers and flurries will move through.

The snap back to cooler October weather arrives for Ontario and Quebec Wednesday and Thursday. The Maritimes will cool Thursday into Friday.

High temperatures on Friday for the Maritimes are mostly expected to range eight-to-12 degrees, which is very close to average for late October.

A cold front and trough (dip southward) in the jet stream is returning cooler October weather west-to-east across the country. (Source: CTV News Atlantic)

Tropical Storm Oscar

Tropical Storm Oscar is moving northeast, away from the southeastern Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands on Tuesday.

The system has become more disorganized and the National Hurricane Center says it is barely meeting the criteria of a tropical storm.

Oscar is expected to become a remnant area of low pressure as it moves northward just to the west of Bermuda Wednesday night.

There is a low chance of some rain or showers from the system brushing eastern Nova Scotia on Thursday. There is a higher chance heavier rain from the remnants of the system reaches eastern Newfoundland Thursday night and Friday. The Burin, Bonavista, and Avalon Peninsulas could get into some rain totalling 50-to-100+ mm.

Oscar is becoming a non-tropical area of low pressure. Heavy rain from the remnants could reach eastern Newfoundland Thursday night and Friday. (Source: CTV News Atlantic)