Last year was another hot and dry one in Chilliwack.
With mean temperatures for 2018 at 1.75 C above normal, it was the sixth consecutive year in excess of the 0.6 C standard deviation, continuing the warming trend which started in 1986, according to Roger Pannett, local volunteer weather observer for Environment Canada.
There was a record-breaking 34 hot days last year with temperatures rising above 30 C, and it was the 17th consecutive year with above the average of seven hot days.
• READ MORE: More hot weather records smashed in Chilliwack
There were a total of 33 record breaking high temperatures observed in 2018 with only two low temperature records, on Feb. 19, according to Pannett.
Last year saw total precipitation of 1,579 millimetres (mm) down 16 per cent from the 30-year average of 1880.1 mm. Of that, 85 centimetres (cm) was snow down from 129.4 cm for the 30-year average.
It was the sixth consecutive year with total precipitation below the 30-year average.
And while there was a lot less precipitation, it rained more often. There were 171 days of rain up from the normal of 161 days.
In addition to the warmest May on record, with mean temperatures 4.4 C above normal, there were also 10 additional months with mean temperatures above normal.
Temperature extremes for 2018 included the record breaking maximum temperature of 36.2 C (10.6 C above normal) on August 8.
The minimum temperature for the year was -7.2 C (8.5 C below normal) on Feb. 20.
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