It’s not the heat, nor the humidity – it’s both that are combining to beat down upon our region as we head into the weekend.
Ottawa unofficially broke a heat record Friday as temperatures topped 34.4 C at 4 p.m., a scant .3 C over 2010’s record.
There’s a humidex advisory in place for an area spanning from Windsor through Prescott and Russell, with the City of Ottawa’s health department maintaining a heat warning through Saturday.
The city’s splash pads and beaches were packed with kids like six-year-old Samuel Aslan.
“I come here all the time when it’s hot and I really like it,” he said of his favourite splash pad.
“It’s really hot and the weather is nice and cold,” said another person at Westboro Beach.
Workers in the heat shared their strategies for cooling off,
“It can be very oppressive at times, I try to get a Popsicle in every once in a while,” said mover Pat Guinette.
“I pour ice water all the time so it makes me cool down,” said chip vendor Kim Lam.
Not everyone had access to water on Friday, as residents near the intersection of Bronson Avenue and MacLaren Street had theirs turned off for construction.
“I couldn’t take a shower but it’s a good thing I brushed my teeth,” said one resident. “I couldn’t even do my dishes inside the house.”
“How am I supposed to drink water?” asked another. “It’s a good thing I put some frozen water in the fridge last night.”
Conservation authorities said the Rideau Valley and Mississippi watersheds are unseasonably low, and could get dangerously so if it doesn’t rain soon.
That could mean no watering on certain days, a complete water ban and more dangerous boating and swimming conditions in communities like Smiths Falls, Perth and Carleton Place.
There is no rain in the long-range forecast, but temperatures will cool down to around 24 C early next week.
With a report from CTV Ottawa’s Ellen Mauro
