Many communities broke or tied high temperature records for the date of June 3.
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CBC News ·
Posted: Jun 04, 2021 10:44 AM CT | Last Updated: June 4
Saskatchewan is in the midst of a heat wave that Environment Canada says is likely to stick around until Saturday.(Jon Hernandez/CBC) comments
Environment Canada data showed 21 communities set or tied June 3 temperature records on Thursday.
The hottest spot in the province was Rosetown, where the mercury hit 36.6 C and broke a record of 36 C that was set in 1988.
The only other community to break 36 C was Lucky Lake, where it hit 36.3 C.
In North Battleford the temperature rose to 35.2 C, breaking a record of 34.4 C set in 1970.
Weather records were toppled throughout Saskatchewan on Thursday.
According to Environment Canada, 21 communities across the province saw daily record highs in the provincial heat wave.
Rosetown was the hot spot at 36.6 C (or 97.9 F), breaking its 1988 record of 36.0 C.
Here are the communities that set new heat benchmarks:
Assiniboia 35.9 C old record 34.3 C 2019
Broadview 33.8 C old record 33.6 C 2019
Coronach 34.3 C old record 34.0 C 1988
Cypress Hills 30.6 C old record 30.0 C 1988
Elbow 34.9 C old record 33.9 C 2019
Estevan 35.1 C old record 34.7 C 2019
Indian Head 35.4 C old record 35.1 C 2019
Kindersley 35.0 C tied 1970 record
Last Mountain Lake 34.2 C old record 33.2 C 2019
Lucky Lake 36.3 C old record 34.2 C 2019
The elevation of Last Mountain Lake is currently 489.72m, at the lower end of the summer operating range, which spans 489.66 to 490.27m. Water Security Agency (WSA) is taking steps to mitigate low runoff by increasing releases from Lake Diefenbaker at the Qu’Appelle River Dam to supplement downstream lake levels along the Qu’Appelle chain, including Last Mountain Lake. WSA anticipates an elevation rise of approximately 15cm by late July as a result of diversions from Lake Diefenbaker. However, because of upstream conveyance capacity limitations, which are expected to diminish in the summer months due to vegetation growth and upcoming evaporation, Last Mountain Lake is not expected to return to a desired elevation throughout the summer unless well above normal rainfall events are experienced.
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Lower than average water levels are expected to continue on Last Mountain Lake.
Persistent dry conditions dating back to 2019, combined with below normal snowmelt inflows have contributed to the low levels, the Water Security Agency (WSA) said in a news release issued Monday.
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Try refreshing your browser, or Lower water levels remain at Last Mountain Lake Back to video
Levels on Last Mountain Lake are primarily dependent on snowmelt, which was well below normal in 2021, with spring rainfall typically playing a smaller role.
At current levels, the lake would need above average precipitation this spring to reach near normal levels by the summer, says the WSA.