OTTAWA – At least 233 people have died amid scorching temperatures in Canada’s British Columbia province since a record-breaking heatwave hit the country’s west on Friday, reported the Xinhua news agency, quoting local media yesterday.
A heatwave this extreme and lasting this long is unprecedented in Canadian history.
Stores in British Columbia are sold out of air conditioners and fans. Hotels in Vancouver were fully booked on Monday, with locals desperate to escape the heat.
Metro Vancouver police on Tuesday said they had responded to more than 100 sudden deaths since the brutal weather took hold.
Cities in British Columbia have smashed at least 59 temperature records, among them Lytton, where nationwide records have been set and broken in rapid succession.
The heatwave is now heading east. – Bernama, July 1, 2021