Temperatures will start climbing on Saturday in the Pacific Northwest, bringing near-record heat and worsening wildfires in western Canada.
The core of this unusually hot weather is being guided by a powerful zone of high pressure, also called a heat dome, that will last for a number of days.
Amid the early-season heat wave that is expected to last into Monday, temperatures will reach as high as 20 to 35 degrees above normal in a zone from California to the Arctic Circle.
The unseasonal high temperatures could further flame the dozens of wildfires burning in Canada’s western provinces. Western Canada is a historically temperate region that has grappled with scorching summer temperatures and unprecedented wildfires fueled by climate change in recent years.
In northern Canada, around Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, a large area of readings around 35 degrees (20 Celsius) above average is forecast.
By Sunday, temperatures 20 to 25 degrees (10 to 20 Celsius) above average will stretch from Ontario to British Columbia and southward along the U.S. West Coast.
Temperatures in Portland, Oregon, are expected to hover around 94 F (34.4 C) throughout the weekend, according to the weather service.
Temperatures in the Seattle area could also meet or surpass daily records, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Jacob DeFlitch. The mercury could be near 85 F (29.4 C) on Saturday and reach into the low 90s (32.2 C) on Sunday, he said.
King County, home to Seattle, directed transportation operators such as bus drivers to let people ride for free if they’re seeking respite from the heat or heading to a cooling center. The county’s regional homeless authority said several cooling and day centers will be open across the county.
Residents and officials in the Pacific Northwest have become more vigilant about heat wave preparations after nearly 800 people died in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia during the heat dome weather event in late June and early July 2021.
