Vancouver breaks temperature record as "nuisance jet stream" brings rain

It was such a mild January day in Vancouver yesterday that the region broke a temperature record.

At 12.2°C, Thursday was the warmest January 5 since records started in 1896. It edged out the previous record of 11.7°C set in 2001.

Vancouver wasn’t the only city to break a record, either. West Vancouver set a new record at 13.5°C, and Sechelt recorded a temperature of 13.7°C — positively spring-like.

Residents may not have felt as warm as the mercury suggested, though, since Environment and Climate Change Canada issued a special weather statement about high winds for much of the South Coast.

January is certainly serving different weather than December where snowstorms mangled roads and led YVR to temporarily suspend all flights.

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Vancouver is in for a warm but rainy week going forward, with temperatures hovering around 8°C, according to Environment Canada.

Meteorologists at The Weather Network blame a “nuisance jet stream” for bringing the rain to BC over the next couple of days. It’s apparently funnelling moist air from southeast Asia which meets a powerful low-pressure system over mountainous terrain, creating severe weather in California and prolonged rain in BC.

“For many in British Columbia, the new year has started on a rather wet and gloomy note, weather-wise,” The Weather Network said. “Unfortunately, this trend will be sticking around for a little bit longer as more rain and wind are in the forecast for the next several days.”

More sunshine can be expected in the second half of January, The Weather Network predicts.