Hamilton basks in record-breaking temperatures

A record that had stood for nearly 50 years fell when Hamilton experienced record-high temperatures on Monday, while the Prairies and other parts of Ontario encountered snow.

The official high at Hamilton International Airport yesterday was 19.1 degrees, said Geoff Coulson, a meteorologist with Environment Canada. “That beat the old record for that day in history which 17.8 degrees on Nov. 12, 1964," he said.

The balminess didn't last, though. Temperatures fell below seasonal levels on Tuesday. But Hamiltonians will get a touch of relief from the relative cold before the weekend.

“We're expecting more seasonal temperature into Thursday, with highs of 7 or 8 degrees,” Coulson said.

Not all Ontarians were treated to warm weather on Monday. The province got a mix of warm and winter-like conditions, with residents in the south ditching sweaters for lighter attire as temperatures in many municipalities reached the high teens, while Ottawa peaked at 20 Celsius.

And light snow and sub-freezing temperatures greeted Prairie residents Monday after weekend snowstorms dumped more than 20 centimetres of snow in Manitoba. The storm system also delivered heavy snowfalls in southern Saskatchewan and much of Alberta, where the flakes were followed by -25 C wind chill.

The weather fluctuations shouldn't come as too much of a shock, said Beverly Archibald, director of True North Weather Consulting Inc., a weather forecasting firm based in Edmonton.

"Canadians have to realize that there are always extremes in weather," said the former Environment Canada meteorologist.

"We are very rarely right at normal."

With files from Canadian Press