Heat warning blankets Calgary

With temperatures staying at or above 30 degrees Celsius until Wednesday, Environment Canada has issued a heat warning for the City of Calgary.

Heat warnings come into effect when highs stay above 29 degrees while overnight lows stay above 14 degrees.

As Stuart Brideaux with EMS says, this can pose some health risks.

“If folks are going to be out either working in the environment or out for recreation or just general commuting, three easy tips that go a long way are: always carry your own shade. So always wear a hat that will keep the heat and sun off your face and neck. Especially children. Certainly stay hydrated as best you can, plain old water is best; including to remember to drink before you’re thirsty, don’t make it a game of catch up as best you can. And use sunscreen — generally an SPF of 30 or higher is acceptable,” explained Brideaux.

“The two most common errors people may make though is under applying sunscreen and applying sunscreen then going out into the sun too quickly after applying, and it hasn’t really taken any effect yet.”

There are several signs of heat stroke to watch out for, including high body temperature, lack of sweat, confusion and fainting. Children and the elderly are more at risk of experiencing problems, along with those who have pre-existing medical conditions.

It’s also an important time to remember about the dangers of leaving pets or humans inside a locked car.

“Even on a 20 degree day the interior temperature of a vehicle in the shade can rise to 40 or 50 degrees Celsius. So on a day when the highs can be in the low to mid 30s the temperature inside the vehicle, even with windows cracked, can begin to skyrocket and any pets or small children left inside are going to be in extreme danger,” said Brideaux.

So other than the health risks, why is this heat warning in place?

660 NEWS Meteorologist Andrew Schultz said it’s a combination of a very large high pressure system, and a stuck jet stream.

“We are talking about the City of Calgary, basically straight south to the U.S. border, to areas north of Edmonton, all the way to the east to Saskatchewan. The jet is far north of our city, in fact far north of Edmonton, and will remain north, so we have no changeability — that in conjunction with a very stable high pressure cell, means sunshine is going to do its thing,” said Schultz.

Then, due to the lack of any movement, this keeps the temperature high in the evening so it doesn’t cool down like it should when we go to bed.

“This high is big enough, that you can kind of think of it like a fence keeping other weather makers out of the region. So really, we are protected by high pressure and don’t see any change for about 48 hours or so,” added Schultz.

After the 48 hours, we should see some rainfall and cooler temperatures on Wednesday.

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