Canada’s top 10 weather stories of 2024

Environment and Climate Change Canada – Environment and Climate Change Canada released its annual list of Canada’s top 10 weather stories of 2024 on Dec. 10. Severe wildfires across the country were the top story in 2023, but a devastating fire causing destruction in Jasper, Alta. topped the list this year.

1. Jasper’s inferno – After hitting 38 degrees Celsius on July 21, Jasper National Park was evacuated the day after strong thunderstorms formed two separate wildfires. One of them destroyed much of the townsite on July 24 before merging with the second fire the next day. The wildfires claimed one-third of the town’s structures, burned 81,000 acres of forest and caused C$880 million in damages to become the second-costliest natural disaster in Canadian history.
2. Central Canada impacted by cyclones – While Hurricane Beryl had significantly weakened by the time it made landfall in the Gulf Coast on July 8, it still packed a punch on July 10 and 11 when it deluged southern Quebec and Nova Scotia with 50 to 130 millimetres of rain in only a matter of hours. On Aug. 9, remnants of Hurricane Debby brought as much as 200 mm of rain to the St. Lawrence River valley, creating the costliest disaster in Quebec history with C$2.5 billion in damages.
3. Deep freeze in Western Canada – Between Jan. 10 to 17, approximately 210 low temperature records were broken in B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan as the mercury plunged below minus-40 C. Classes and flights were cancelled, power grids were taxed, and the Okanagan Valley’s fruit industry was devastated. In total, C$180 million in insured losses were reported.
4. B.C. atmospheric rivers – Moist air that brought 200 mm of rain to parts of B.C.’s South Coast in late January prompted flood warnings, broke 100 high temperature records and closed the Trans-Canada Highway as well as ski resorts. From Oct. 18 to 20, Vancouver saw up to 200 mm of rain while Vancouver Island received more than 300 mm in some parts. Sadly, five people were killed in the storms.
5. Calgary hailstorm – Two rotating thunderstorms formed on Aug. 5 along the southern Alberta foothills and moved towards Calgary, leaving nearly C$2.8 billion in damage. Baseball-sized hail was reported southeast of the city, as well as severe crop damage. Inside Calgary, some hailstones were big enough to create holes in siding and smash windows.
6. Summer of floods – On July 15, 50 to 60 mm of rain hit the London, Ont. area in four hours while Hamilton and Burlington received 60 mm, flooding roads and basements. The next day, more storms hit the Greater Toronto Area, bringing nearly 100 mm at Pearson International Airport, creating more flash flooding and C$940 million in damages. More floods occurred on Aug. 17 and 18, this time with nearly 130 mm of rain at Pearson.
7. Arctic heatwave – Temperatures climbed above 30 C in the first week of August across much of the Northwest Territories, including Inuvik where a cooling centre was made in the town’s curling rink. Fort Good Hope hit a record-breaking 37.0 C on Aug. 9. In addition, 4.2 million acres of forest were burned in the N.W.T. that summer.
8. Cape Breton winter storm – A low-pressure system provided Sydney, N.S. with 100 cm of snow from Feb. 2 to 5. On Feb. 4, the Cape Breton Regional Municipality declared a State of Local Emergency, telling residents to shelter in place. Some snowplows became stuck while removing the snow.
9. Tale of two extremes – High temperature records in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador were broken on June 19 and 20, with Bathurst, N.B. getting to as high as 37.0 C. Meanwhile, in Alberta, low temperature records were broken, getting down to as low as minus-4.8 C with frost and snow appearing in some places.
10. Western Labrador wildfires – The aforementioned June heatwave in Atlantic Canada dried out the Churchill Falls area and lightning ignited a wildfire on June 13, strengthened by heat and winds. Many residents were evacuated nearly 300 kilometres to the east to Happy Valley-Goose Bay. Nearly a month later, residents of Labrador City were also evacuated to the east after lightning sparked another wildfire.