As people in Ontario and Quebec suffer through the first heat wave of the season, Environment Canada is projecting abnormally high temperatures this summer across the country.

"The dice are loaded to give you a warmer summer, so get used to it," said David Phillips, a spokesman for the agency.

"We're going to see a lot of this, this summer."

The darker the colour on this map, the more likely an area is to see above-average temperatures this summer, according to Environment Canada.

It's been more than five days since Southern Ontario and parts of Quebec first faced temperatures that approached or topped 30 C – which felt like 41 because of the humidity.

That's about 10 degrees hotter than normal.

Environment Canada said that on Sunday, temperatures reached 30 C in Toronto, 31 C in Ottawa and 32 C in Montreal.

Children play in one of the many wading pools that Toronto opened during the heat wave.

Heat-related emergencies jump

Paramedics in communities such as Toronto, which declared an extreme heat emergency on the weekend, said they've faced a surge of calls.

• FROM JUNE 11, 2005: Heat wave fries Central Canada

"We're seeing things like increases in chest pain, shortness of breath, diabetic emergencies and heat-related calls," said Ian Attard, of Toronto's Emergency Medical Services.

In response, Toronto's air-conditioned municipal buildings were designated as cooling centres and stayed open.

Movie theatres saw brisker than usual business, while stores couldn't keep air conditioners on the shelves.

Power problems loom

Ontario was easily able to handle the increased demand for power on Sunday, officials said.

However, they warned that it may be another story on Monday as businesses re-open and more air conditioners get turned to full blast.

Forecasters expect the heat wave to end in mid-week.

But climatologists said another one will be along quickly enough.