Temperature records broken across eastern Ontario and Quebec on Saturday

People walk past a melting Rideau Canal in Ottawa on Feb. 10, 2024. While the high temperature in Ottawa did not set a record, several other communities in eastern Ontario saw record highs. (Sam Houpt/CTV News Ottawa)

Environment and Climate Change Canada says several temperature records were broken across eastern Ontario and parts of Quebec on Saturday.

Kingston, Brockville, Napanee, and Trenton all saw double-digit highs on Saturday, shattering records that date back decades and, in Kingston's case, more than a century.

Ottawa did not set a temperature record on Saturday. The high in the capital reached 6 C in the afternoon. While that was still more than 10 degrees warmer than normal, it fell short of the 1966 high temperature record of 7.2 C.

It was, however, a record high in Gatineau. That same day in 1966, the high temperature across the river from Ottawa was 5.6 C, but it reached 6.1 C in Gatineau this year.

A high of 10 C was recorded in Brockville on Saturday, breaking the 1981 high temperature record of 9 C.

Kemptville set a record of 9.3 C, slightly above the previous record of 9 C, also set in 1981.

Kingston's high on Saturday was 12.5 C, almost five degrees warmer than the previous high temperature record of 7.8 C set back in 1882. Records in Kingston date back to 1872. 

Greater Napanee also set a record high of 12.5 C on Saturday, beating a 7.8 C record for Feb. 10 set in 1976.

In Trenton, the mercury hit 12.1 C, beating a 2001 record of 7.2 C.

Other communities that set temperature records include Cobourg, Welland, and Oshawa in Ontario, and Montreal, Trois-Rivieres, Chibougamau, Sherbrooke, Beauceville, Shawinigan, and L'Assomption in Quebec. The Quebec Winter Carnival closed the Palais de Bonhomme on Sunday because of persistent warm temperatures.

Ottawa set a temperature record on Friday with a hgh of 9.9 C, surpassing the 1990 record of 7.4 C. 

Temperatures are set to drop back to seasonal norms this week. In Ottawa, the average high for this time of year is around -5 C, while the average low is around -14 C.

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