The end may be in sight!
Smoke looms in the air from Washington’s wildfires as the entire west coast deals with a historic dry spell.
Victoria has officially experienced the driest 90-day period since records began in 1898.
0.6 millimetres of precipitation has graced the Victoria-Gonzales area specifically.
BC is no stranger to drought. The province has a system where a rating of five is the driest and indicates an extreme lack of rainfall in the region and a rating of zero indicates an abundance of precipitation.
Most of BC is being affected by drought currently with eight regions reaching the highest possible drought rating of five. This includes the east coast and west coast of Vancouver Island.
The central coast and Haida Gwaii both have the second highest rating of four.
On the mainland the drought conditions have gotten so bad Metro Vancouver has recommended measures to conserve drinking water by taking shorter and less frequent showers and avoiding watering lawns.
Greater Victoria has a similar annual water restriction that spans from May 1st to September 30th, but since then there have been no restrictions on water consumption set by the Capital Regional District (CRD).
Luckily for Greater Victoria, the Weather Network predicts Friday’s weather forecast will boast a 70% chance of precipitation, estimating 10-15 millimeters of rain.
Rainfall on Friday would help clear the smoke and prepare our watersheds for an oncoming rainy season and any possible atmospheric rivers that have become a mainstay of autumn on the west coast.
