In Litona, British Columbia, Canada, 46.6 degrees Celsius was recorded on Sunday, beating a record set 84 years ago, and in Eugene, Oregon, USA, the thermometer rose to 43.3 degrees.
Seattle, Washington, USA, recorded 40 degrees Celsius on Sunday. The great heat has surprised many Seattle residents who are accustomed to much colder weather.
In Portland, northwestern Oregon, the U.S. air temperature reached 44.4 degrees Celsius on Sunday, the National Meteorological Service (NWS) reported.
In southwestern Canada, shops have sold out air conditioners and fans, and there are open air-conditioned centers in the cities where people can cool off.
In British Columbia, more than 40 heat records were broken over the weekend, and meteorologists predict the heat will continue.
“A prolonged, dangerous and historic heat wave will continue this week,” the Canadian Environment Service said, forecasting up to 40 degrees Celsius in several regions.
The service has issued heat warnings in British Columbia, Alberta and parts of Saskatchewan, the Yukon and the Northwest Territories.
NWS has issued similar warnings. The service has previously warned that this is likely to be one of the most extreme and long-lasting heat waves in the northwestern United States.
Nick Bonds, a scientist at the University of Washington, told AFP that this extraordinary heat was not just the result of climate change, but had exacerbated it.
“Climate change is a factor here, but certainly secondary,” Bonds said.
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