Misplaced Pages

#845154

90-713: Boston Bar is an unincorporated community in the Fraser Canyon of the Canadian province of British Columbia . The name dates from the time of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush (1858–1861). A "bar" is a gold-bearing sandbar or sandy riverbank, and the one slightly down river and opposite today's town was populated heavily by Americans, who were known in the parlance of the Chinook Jargon as "Boston men" or simply "Bostons". A settlement developed on

180-576: A 10-year event in a climate warmed 2°C relative to pre-industrial levels. Broader climate shifts may have also contributed to worsening the heat wave; data provided by Verisk shows that the Pacific Northwest is among the fastest-heating regions in the continental United States and southern Canada. The urban heat island effect could have further exacerbated the impact in cities. Based on historic data, several meteorologists noted that this phenomenon should be expected to occur only once over

270-495: A chain of three lakes and the Nahatlatch River. Boston Bar sits in a pocket climate created by the confines of the canyon, and though on the edge of the coastal temperate zone just to the south, its climate is subject to the seasonal extremes of temperature common in the interior of the province. It enjoys 4 very distinct seasons with temperatures reaching up to 35-40 °C in the summer and down to -5 to -10 °C in

360-523: A community built on the cliffsides here during the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush . At the site that once housed railway workers, a tourist attraction built in 1971 takes visitors across Hell's Gate via an aerial tramway . At Siska , a few minutes south of Lytton, there are the Cisco bridges —a pair of railway bridges at the throat of a rocky gorge. From south to north, the Canadian Pacific has been on

450-620: A high of 34.3 °C (93.7 °F), Geraldton saw 33.6 °C (92.5 °F), while the hottest temperature was in Pickle Lake , at 35.2 °C (95.4 °F). Weakened by interaction with the Hudson Bay waters, the heat wave still managed to beat some daily records in Newfoundland and Labrador . Hopedale registered 25.1 °C (77.2 °F) on July 5, while Happy Valley-Goose Bay reached 33.2 °C (91.8 °F)

540-607: A major population center in the region). On June 28, records were set in Squamish, British Columbia at 43.0 °C (109.4 °F), Abbotsford at 42.9 °C (109.2 °F), Port Alberni at 42.7 °C (108.9 °F) and Victoria at 39.8 °C (103.6 °F). On June 29, the temperature in Lytton, British Columbia , hit 49.6 °C (121.3 °F), the highest temperature ever recorded in Canada, although

630-403: A massive Rex block . In this situation, a high-pressure area stays in place for an extended period and does not let cyclones pass through it, which otherwise could have cooled the region; in this particular case, the high-pressure area was sandwiched between two stationary lows, which prevented the high-pressure region from moving. As the Pacific Northwest experienced severe drought conditions,

720-669: A mile in length. The Fraser Canyon Highway Tunnels were constructed from the spring of 1957 to 1964 as part of the Trans-Canada Highway project. There are seven tunnels in total, the shortest being approximately 57 metres (187 ft); the longest, however, is approximately 610 metres (2,000 ft) and is one of North America 's longest. They are situated between Yale and Boston Bar . In order from south to north, they are: Yale (completed 1963), Saddle Rock (1958), Sailor Bar (1959), Alexandra (1964), Hell's Gate (1960), Ferrabee (1964) and China Bar (1961). The Hell's Gate tunnel

810-411: A nearby more modern station reported that the extreme was 1 °C lower. The stations were temporarily isolated by the Lytton wildfire the next day. The record occurred after consecutively setting new record highs of 46.6 °C (115.9 °F) on June 27 and 47.9 °C (118.2 °F) on June 28. It is also the highest temperature ever recorded north of 45°N , the highest temperature in

900-530: A row. In Redding, the temperatures soared to 114 °F (46 °C) on June 27, a daily record, while in Siskiyou County , Montague tied an all-time high for the county, at 109 °F (43 °C). Southern California was also impacted. Palm Springs registered 121 °F (49 °C) on June 27, surpassing the previous daily record, while other communities, such as Palmdale , Campo and Idyllwild , tied with them. Being largely on

990-491: A specific event, the Chief Coroner of British Columbia stated that 569 casualties could be attributed to heat, and that in the prior five years, only three heat-related casualties had been registered. A later report put the heat-related death toll at 619. A disproportionate number of heat-related deaths during the 2021 heat wave occurred in government-funded or licensed buildings such as long-term care facilities. Of

SECTION 10

#1732765656846

1080-445: A temperature of 112 °F (44 °C), and on the following day, the temperature increased further to 116 °F (47 °C). Salem, Oregon , reached 105 °F (41 °C) on June 26, its record high temperature for June. It then hit 113 °F (45 °C) degrees on June 27, breaking the record for the highest temperature ever recorded in that city, which was previously 108 °F (42 °C). Salem then exceeded

1170-568: A thousand or several thousand years, while David Sauchyn, a scientist at the University of Regina , said that climate models had been predicting a heat wave of a similar intensity to happen in late 2020s at the earliest. A paper in Communications Earth & Environment found that the heat dome in the Pacific Northwest was 59% longer (27 days duration versus 17 days), 34% larger, and had 6% higher maximum amplitude, comparing

1260-538: A week (which is in and of itself unusual) and in general to tie or beat daily records. Boise , for example, tied one for June 29 (105 °F (41 °C)) and for June 30 (104 °F (40 °C)), and also recorded nine consecutive days of temperatures exceeding 100 °F (38 °C), which tied the record for such a streak. Records were also beaten in the Idaho Panhandle , with Coeur d'Alene registering 109 °F (43 °C), which surpassed

1350-586: Is followed by BC Highway 12 , then from Lillooet to Pavilion by BC Highway 99 (the farther end of the Sea-to-Sky Highway , though not carrying that name in this area). The British Columbia Railway (now operated by the CN) line follows the same stretch of canyon from Lillooet to just beyond Pavilion]. Between there and the mouth of the Chilcotin River there are only rough ranching roads, and

1440-535: Is hot. The vegetation has a mixture of rain forest and dry interior plant species with bigleaf maple and western red cedar prominent among the rain forest species and ponderosa pine , more common northward, standing tall as one of the Interior species. Douglas-fir is the most common tree. Boston Bar is in the Interior Douglas-fir zone, wet warm subzone (IDFww) . One consequence of the climate

1530-423: Is navigable between Boston Bar and Lillooet and also between Big Bar Ferry and Prince George and beyond, although rapids at Soda Canyon and elsewhere were still difficult waters for the many steamboats which piloted the river in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The first sternwheeler to pass the rapids was Skuzzy , which was built with a multiple-compartment hull to preserve her from sinking from rock damage. She

1620-456: Is that Boston Bar is in the range of the northern Pacific rattlesnake , which is common in areas farther upstream along the Fraser and Thompson Rivers, such as Lytton . Boston Bar has a warm-summer mediterranean climate ( Csb ). Boston Bar experienced wildfires during the 2021 Western North America heat wave , with firefighters battling them. The highway between the town and Spences Bridge

1710-514: Is the only tunnel that does not have lights, while the China Bar tunnel is the only tunnel that requires ventilation. The China Bar and Alexandra tunnels have warning lights that are activated by cyclists before they enter the tunnels. This was required because the tunnels are curved. It is expected that the Ferrabee tunnel will get the same warning lights as it too is curved. At the mouth of

1800-597: The Chilko River , notably Lava Canyon and another Black Canyon. There are other canyons on the Fraser that are not considered part of the canyon, notably at Soda Creek , between Williams Lake and Prince George. The official but comparatively diminutive Grand Canyon of the Fraser is in the river's upper stretch through the Rocky Mountain Trench , about 115 km (71 mi) upstream from Prince George and about 20 km (12 mi) upstream from

1890-628: The Edmonton International Airport , near Leduc , hovered around 33 °C (91 °F) from June 29 to July 1. In the Northwest Territories , on June 28, Nahanni Butte set a regional record at 38.1 °C (100.6 °F). Two days later, Fort Smith , just north of the Alberta border, reached 39.9 °C (103.8 °F), which beat the previous all-time territorial record, registered in

SECTION 20

#1732765656846

1980-472: The Olympic Peninsula , reported 110 °F (43 °C) on June 28, exceeding its prior record by 11 °F (6 °C). On Mount Rainier , normally freezing temperatures reached 73 °F (23 °C) degrees above 10,000 feet (3,000 m) on June 27. The heat wave was blamed for greater glacier melt on Mt. Rainier than had been seen in the state in the past 100 years. East of

2070-628: The Pacific Northwest and Alberta rushed to buy A/C units, which significantly increased their prices (some double the normal), created long installation and delivery backlogs, and ultimately made them unavailable in many stores. The pent-up demand for cooling forced electricity consumption to soar to record-high summer values. BC Hydro reported a peak of 8,500  MW , while several electricity providers in Washington also logged record values. It also prompted many power utilities in

2160-542: The Rocky Mountains , particularly in the northern parts of the Prairie provinces . Sweltering conditions were observed as far east as Northwest Ontario . By July 4–5, the remnants of the heat dome crossed Hudson Bay and, weakened somewhat by the cool waters, entered Quebec , and after that, Labrador , briefly triggering temperatures of around 30 °C (86 °F). Climate change in Canada and in

2250-569: The 2019 survey following an increase in 90-degree days. The rate of air-conditioned households was even lower in British Columbia despite marked increases over the years – BC Hydro estimated that only 34% of the province's residents used air conditioning. In order to respond to the crisis, COVID-19 restrictions were waived for designated cooling shelters in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. Trying to stay cool, residents in

2340-588: The CP line. All westbound trains—CN, CP, Via Rail's westbound Canadian —use the CN tracks. Just north of Lillooet, narrow rock ledges choke the river just at the confluence of the lower canyon of the Bridge River , forming an obstacle to migrating fish that has made this spot the busiest aboriginal fishing site on the river, from ancient times to the present. Concentrations of First Nations people here, from all tribes of

2430-663: The Canyon, an archeological site documents the presence of the Stó:lō people in the area from the early Holocene period, 8,000 to 10,000 years ago after the retreat of the Fraser Glacier . Research farther upriver at the Keatley Creek Archaeological Site , near Pavilion, is dated to 8000 BP, when a huge lake filled what is now the canyon above Lillooet, created by a slide a few miles south of

2520-478: The Cascades, several locations saw new temperature records set over a period of a few days. On June 29, Spokane, Ephrata and Omak all reached their all-time records, at 109 °F (43 °C), 115 °F (46 °C) and 117 °F (47 °C), respectively. Extremely warm minimum temperatures were also recorded: Ephrata's thermometers did not go lower than 82 °F (28 °C) on June 29. It

2610-572: The Fraser's confluence with the Bowron River . Despite its name, the Grand Canyon of the Fraser is only one treacherous switchback rapid in a shallow rock gorge, and it has neither the roughness of water nor the depth and severity of canyon as is found in the area south from Big Bar to Lillooet or between Boston Bar and Yale. Almost all of the rivers and creeks feeding the Fraser from Williams Lake south have their own canyons which open onto

2700-686: The Fraser, or are just up side-valleys a few miles. These include Marble Canyon , Churn Creek , the Chilcotin River, the Bridge River , Seton Lake and Cayoosh Creek , the Stein River , the Nahatlatch River , the Coquihalla River and the innumerable smaller creeks flanking the river between Kanaka Bar and Yale. The Canadian Pacific Railway has at least 30 tunnels in its Yale to Lytton section with one up to half

2790-575: The Interior, were believed to have been in excess of 10,000. Many stretches of the Fraser are named in their own right, starting with the Little Canyon between Yale and Spuzzum , which is officially the lowest reach of the Fraser Canyon (although in regional terms Hope , 32 kilometres (20 mi) farther south, is considered a canyon town and to be the southern outlet of the canyon because the highway became more difficult from that point;

Boston Bar, British Columbia - Misplaced Pages Continue

2880-520: The Northwest Territories, in the state of Washington as well as a tied record in Oregon. The record-high temperatures associated with the heat wave stretched from Oregon to northern Manitoba , and daily highs were set as far east as Labrador and as far southwest as Southern California . The extreme heat sparked numerous, extensive wildfires, some reaching hundreds of square kilometers in area. The eponymous Lytton wildfire destroyed

2970-793: The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport recorded three consecutive days of temperatures over 100 °F (38 °C). The temperature rose to 104 °F (40 °C) on June 27, beating the previous record of 103 °F (39 °C), and the record was broken again the following day by a high of 108 °F (42 °C). The suburbs farther from the coast were even hotter – a local radio station in Maple Valley reported temperatures of 118 °F (48 °C). On June 26, Port Angeles recorded an all-time record high of 95 °F (35 °C). The Quillayute Airport weather station, also on

3060-699: The U.S. or Canada recorded outside the Desert Southwest , and higher than the absolute maximum temperatures of Europe or South America . In Alberta, the highest heat was observed in the period from June 29 to July 1. Banff 37.8 °C (100.0 °F), Beaverlodge 40.5 °C (104.9 °F), Cochrane 35.0 °C (95.0 °F), Fort McMurray 40.3 °C (104.5 °F), Jasper 41.2 °C (106.2 °F), Grande Prairie 41.5 °C (106.7 °F), Hendrickson Creek 38.3 °C (100.9 °F), Nordegg 37.2 °C (99.0 °F), Red Earth Creek 40.1 °C (104.2 °F) all saw

3150-598: The United States National Weather Service warned of an approaching heat wave in the Pacific Northwest, whose origins could be traced to torrential rains in China . There, the warm, moist air rose and was eventually entrained by the jet stream , which transported it east over cooler waters. When that air current encountered an upper-level high-pressure zone, also called a ridge, it started to significantly deform, being forced to accommodate

3240-611: The United States are widely considered to have worsened the heat wave's unprecedented intensity and duration. According to a rapid attribution analysis , the heat wave would have been highly unlikely in the absence of anthropogenic climate change, which increased the likelihood of such a heat wave at least 150-fold. A further study in Nature Climate Change estimated that its occurrence was projected to increase rapidly with further global warming, possibly becoming

3330-415: The United States, as well as British Columbia , and in its latter phase, Alberta , Manitoba , the Northwest Territories , Saskatchewan , and Yukon , all in Canada. It also affected inland regions of Central and Southern California , Nevada, and Montana , though the temperature anomalies were not as extreme as in the regions farther north. The heat wave was characterized as a heat dome because of

3420-613: The already warm air heated more quickly than usual, which intensified the ridge so strongly it caused a heat dome . The downslope winds from the Cascades and other mountain ranges further warmed the air in the valleys. After the heat dome hovered over British Columbia and the Northwestern United States for a few days, it began to move eastward, bringing relief to the Pacific coast but breaking records east of

3510-456: The area to formally ask to conserve energy. The Idaho State Capitol voluntarily turned off lights as a result and in the Spokane area, rolling power outages were used to reduce load on the grid. Some residents chose to shelter from the heat by booking rooms in hotels, which often ran out of air-conditioned accommodation. According to CoStar calculations, the search for cooled rooms made

3600-481: The canyon walls rise about 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) above the rapids. Fish ladders along the river's side permit migrating salmon to bypass a rockslide that diverted the river during the blasting of the Canadian Northern Railway line in 1913. The area around Hell's Gate carries the name Black Canyon, which may either be a reference to the colour of the rocks when it rains, or the name of

3690-805: The construction of the CPR line (1881–1885) then later the Canadian Northern Railway (today the Canadian National Railway ) line on the Boston Bar side of the river. Boston Bar is a Canadian National Railway divisional point , where the Ashcroft Subdivision from Kamloops to Boston Bar joins the Yale Subdivision from Boston Bar to Vancouver . North Bend is also at the doorstep of the Nahatlatch Valley,

Boston Bar, British Columbia - Misplaced Pages Continue

3780-735: The daily high record the next day, and set the highest minimum temperatures on these days (72 °F (22 °C) on July 2). The heat wave was the deadliest weather event in Canadian history. Over 1,000 deaths occurred due to the direct consequences of the heat wave (such as hyperthermia ). Most of the deaths occurred in Canada – about 600 more deaths than usual were noted in British Columbia and 66 in Alberta . Although excess death measurements are not guaranteed to be caused by

3870-456: The death of 651,000 farm animals. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimated that the heat wave caused at least $ 8.9 billion (2021 USD ) in damages in the USA. The death toll has been estimated to exceed 1,400 people, with at least 808 deaths estimated in western Canada. The Chief Coroner of British Columbia reported that 619 deaths were recorded due to heat exposure in

3960-683: The double-tracking of those railways and major upgrades to Highway 1 (the Trans Canada Highway), travel through the canyon was even more precarious than it is now. During the frontier era it was a major obstacle between the Lower Mainland and the Interior Plateau, and the slender trails along its rocky walls – many of them little better than notches cut into granite, with a few handholds – were compared to goat-tracks. North of Lytton , it

4050-485: The east bank of the river to the north of the confluence with Anderson River. This was later moved to the present site with the construction of Canadian Northern Pacific Railway . The original Nlaka'pamuctsin (Thompson Salish) name of Boston Bar was rendered in English-style spelling as Quayome , which appears commonly on frontier-era maps and in diaries and newspapers of the day. The name originally referred to

4140-414: The event. As of June 29, 2021, 103 all-time heat records were set across Western Canada. On June 27, there were 59 weather stations in B.C. that set records for hottest temperatures recorded. These were largely beaten in the following days (Kamloops, for instance, registered 45.8 °C (114.4 °F) on June 28 and 47.3 °C (117.1 °F) on June 29, the peak temperature recorded in

4230-416: The extreme temperatures and the exceptionally strong ridge centered over the area, whose probability of formation was linked to the effects of climate change by multiple studies. It resulted in some of the highest temperatures ever recorded in the region, including the highest temperature ever measured in Canada at 49.6 °C (121.3 °F), as well as the highest temperatures in British Columbia, in

4320-869: The few exceptions include the Pitt and the Chilliwack in the Lower Fraser Valley. The Thompson Canyon , from Lytton to Ashcroft , is a sequence of large canyons of its own, some of them also named, although most British Columbians and travellers think of it as part of the Fraser Canyon. Other important canyons on tributaries include Coquihalla Canyon , the Bridge River Canyon, Seton Canyon and adjacent Cayoosh Canyon , Pavilion Canyon , Vermilion Canyon (Slok Creek) and Churn Creek Canyon . The Chilcotin River also has several subcanyons, as does

4410-593: The following day. The heat wave broke numerous records by large margins, particularly in the Pacific Northwest. Several large cities, including Portland , Seattle , and Spokane , experienced high temperatures far exceeding 100 °F (38 °C) and low temperatures higher than the area's normal daily high temperatures. The heat wave beat Washington's all-time heat record in Hanford (120 °F (49 °C)) and tied one for Oregon (119 °F (48 °C) at two places, including at Pelton Dam ). The same temperature

4500-402: The heat wave. On July 13, 2021, Multnomah County, Oregon published an analysis which found that a majority of deaths occurred in households which had no air conditioning or had only fans. The heat wave caused a surge in 9-1-1 calls and emergency department visits, with later analysis finding almost 2,800 heat-related emergency department visits made on July 25–30. In Portland,

4590-417: The heat wave. Some hospitals were also unable to keep temperatures in a comfortable range for patients and staff. At least two Lower Mainland and one Northern hospital recorded indoor temperatures of over 32°C in the emergency department, while an acute care floor at Lions Gate Hospital got as hot as 38°C. In British Columbia, E-Comm emergency dispatchers answered nearly 15,300 calls on June 26-27, which

SECTION 50

#1732765656846

4680-707: The heat, went missing in the Willamette River , another did so in Portland, while in Washington, three people drowned. The heat wave was a problem for major cities in the Northwest due to a lack of air conditioning. Seattle and Portland had the lowest and third-lowest percentage of air-conditioned households among major metro areas in the United States, respectively. In 2015, a U.S. Census Bureau survey found that only 33% of Seattle homes have air conditioning (A/C) units, but that number increased to 44% in

4770-627: The high-pressure area south of the jet stream's meander. At the same time, the Southwestern United States was enduring an intense drought which caused higher-than-average temperatures, leading to a similar heat wave earlier in June . The remnants of this heat wave then moved north to the Pacific Northwest. Six days later, Environment Canada issued a heat warning for Alberta, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Manitoba, Yukon, and Northwest Territories. These conditions made way for

4860-575: The hotel occupancy in British Columbia reach the highest levels since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic , while Washington County, Oregon (suburbs of Portland) hotels reported occupancy levels more than double the rate from 2020. The heat wave strained and damaged the region's infrastructure . It caused the sidewalks to buckle due to thermal expansion of concrete (57 sidewalks were damaged in Edmonton alone). In Washington and Oregon , damage

4950-478: The margin of the high pressure dome , Idaho did not see temperatures as extreme as elsewhere. In Lewiston , on the border with Washington, 115 °F (46 °C) was noted on June 29, beating an all-time June record and becoming the third-highest temperature in the history of recordings for the city. Other localities in the Treasure Valley to the east were expected to sustain triple-digit heat for

5040-405: The month, breaking 26 daily records across the provence. Elsewhere, the heat arrived slightly later. Saskatoon reached 35.4 °C (95.7 °F) on July 1 and beat the monthly record the following day, at 40.5 °C (104.9 °F), a tenth of degree below the all-time record. La Ronge registered an all-time high with a reading of 37.9 °C (100.2 °F). Regina , like most of

5130-466: The northern parts of the province. Stony Rapids saw the mercury reach 39.8 °C (103.6 °F) on June 30, an all-time high. Record temperatures were also set at Key Lake Airport and Collins Bay Airport on July 1, both at 37.0 °C (98.6 °F), as well as in Uranium City (38.0 °C (100.4 °F)). July highs were also observed in these settlements on the first day of

5220-471: The number of calls and the response times doubled, setting a record for the area. Non-emergency municipal services were also strained—on June 26, the non-emergency health information service ( 2-1-1 ) could not respond to 750 heat-related calls due to lack of working staff. Some deaths also occurred among those seeking cooling in the Pacific Northwest's rivers. Two swimmers in Salem , who were trying to escape

5310-506: The observed event and the event after detrending. Overall the strength of the heat dome was 86% greater than the same event would have been without background warming. Much of the Pacific Northwest, normally known for its temperate weather in June, experienced temperature anomalies of 20–35 °F (11–19 °C) above average during this heat wave. Ground temperatures in some locations were measured to be excessively high - in Wenatchee, Washington , it reached 145 °F (63 °C), while

5400-515: The other side of the river from today's town, but came into use for the present site after the original was renamed North Bend by the Canadian Pacific Railway . In June 2011, Boston Bar briefly unofficially changed its name to "Vancouver Bar", in an effort to support the nearby Vancouver Canucks hockey team of the NHL in the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals as they took on the Boston Bruins . This followed Canadian restaurant chain Boston Pizza unofficially changing their name to "Vancouver Pizza" during

5490-464: The pavement at an intersection in Portland, Oregon reached 180 °F (82 °C). The heat wave, combined with other extreme weather occurrences elsewhere, yielded the hottest June on record in North America. It also contributed to the hottest June on record locally and regionally for many locations in Canada and the USA. The highest temperatures of the heat wave were registered in British Columbia, but areas as far east as Ontario were affected by

SECTION 60

#1732765656846

5580-424: The present-day town. During the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush of 1858–1860, 10,500 miners and an untold number of hangers-on populated its banks and towns. The Fraser Canyon War and the series of events known as McGowan's War occurred during the gold rush. Other important histories connected with the canyon include the building of the Cariboo Wagon Road and the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The river

5670-435: The previous day's record temperature on June 28, with a maximum temperature of 117 °F (47 °C). However, not all the regions of the mid- Willamette Valley experienced extreme heat on June 28. Regions south of Salem, for example, did not see highs above mid-90s Fahrenheit on that day, likely due to cooler ocean air in the area. The Willamette Valley also experienced extreme overnight temperature drops (twice

5760-406: The previous highest temperature for June and equaled the all-time high for the city. Most of Montana was placed on heat advisories, but the areas that were most affected by the heat wave were on the extreme northwest and eastern parts of the state. Kalispell and Missoula registered temperatures of 101 °F (38 °C) on June 29, both daily records and 1 °F (−17 °C) short of

5850-526: The provincial healthcare minister, to change the leader of British Columbia's emergencies response management to Jim Chu , former Vancouver's police chief, and to appoint a chief ambulance officer. In the United States, the death toll was lower but still in the hundreds: at least 116 deaths with confirmed heat-related causes in Oregon , at least 112 in Washington and one in Idaho . The New York Times analysis suggested that almost 450 excess deaths in Washington and 160 deaths in Oregon occurred during

5940-518: The record for June; Libby succeeded in doing so, setting the plank at 109 °F (43 °C). In the eastern parts of the state, several daily records were also noted: Livingston reached 97 °F (36 °C) on June 30 and Miles City saw 105 °F (41 °C) two days later; Billings tied its 100 °F (38 °C) daily record on July 1 and had not fallen below 69 °F (21 °C) on July 3, while Glasgow bettered its July 1 record to 102 °F (39 °C), tied

6030-437: The rest of the province, other than by the difficult wagon road to Lillooet via Fountain. During the automotive age and following the construction of the Canadian Northern Railway in 1904–05, a newer version of the road was built through the canyon. The Fraser Canyon Highway was surveyed in 1920 and constructed in 1924–25 with a through-route available after the completion of the (second) Alexandra Suspension Bridge in 1926. This

6120-423: The river cutting into the uplifting Interior Plateau. From the northern Cariboo to Fountain , the river follows the line of the huge Fraser Fault, which runs on a north–south axis and meets the Yalakom Fault a few miles downstream from Lillooet . Exposures of lava flows are present in cliffs along the Fraser Canyon. They represent volcanic activity in the southern Chilcotin Group during the Pliocene period and

6210-435: The river is navigable to Yale). Between the Spuzzum and Boston Bar was known in the gold rush as the Big Canyon or Black Canyon; there are several named subcanyons of the Big Canyon, most famously Hells Gate Canyon (in some descriptions the Black Canyon is below Hell's Gate). Above the Big Canyon there are the Lillooet Canyon, Fountain Canyon, Glen Fraser Canyon, Moran Canyon, High Bar Canyon, French Bar Canyon and more all

6300-437: The same place in 1941. It was also the new highest reliably recorded temperature above 60 degrees latitude . Yukon was largely bypassed by the heat wave, but on June 28, some areas in the territory went over 30 °C (86 °F), including Whitehorse (30.3 °C (86.5 °F)) and Teslin (31.1 °C (88.0 °F)), both of which were daily records. Saskatchewan 's heat records were mainly concentrated in

6390-407: The same round of the playoffs. Across the Fraser River is the small town of North Bend, which could only be accessed by rail or by aerial ferry until January 1986 when the two lane bridge was built. The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) has a small terminal here that is the half way point between Vancouver and Kamloops. The building of the railway played an important role in this region, first with

6480-424: The size of normal fluctuations) due to cooler air coming from the ocean – Portland cooled a record 52 °F (29 °C) during the night, while Salem almost approached its all-time largest temperature swing, from 117 °F (47 °C) to 61 °F (16 °C). Between 1894 when records began and June 2021, temperatures over 100 °F (38 °C) were only recorded three times; however,

6570-464: The southern part of the province was spared the extremes reached in the northern parts, with a maximum of 35.0 °C (95.0 °F) on July 2. In a similar way to Saskatchewan , the majority of heat records (including all-time highs) were noted in the northern parts of the province. The remote community of Tadoule Lake observed a high of 38.1 °C (100.6 °F), beating the previous all-time record by 6.2 °C (11 °F). A record high

6660-470: The strongest heat ever measured in these communities, most after breaking all-time records of the previous day. Calgary noted 36.3 °C (97.3 °F) on June 29 and July 1, which stopped just 0.2 °C (0.4 °F) short of the highest observed temperature ever and beating the all-time records for June and July. Edmonton also saw temperatures approach the absolute maxima – the city centre registered 37.0 °C (98.6 °F) on June 30, while

6750-412: The terrain is a mix of canyon depths flanked by arid benchland and high plateau. Between Pavilion and Lillooet, the river's gorge is at its maximum depth, with the river throttled through a series of narrow gorges flanked by high cliffs, though still flanked above those cliffs by wide benchlands which stand on the foreshoulder of the mountain ranges flanking the gorge. At Hells Gate , near Boston Bar ,

6840-405: The total heat-wave-related deaths, 47 people died in community living, assisted living or long-term care facilities. Further, 62 people died from heat exposure in social housing run or funded by the provincial government. Eight individuals who lived at Vancouver Mental Health and Substance use housing died. Records show indoor air temperatures in some long-term care facilities rose to over 30°C during

6930-407: The village of Lytton, British Columbia , the day after the city set the record high temperature for Canada. Extreme heat also damaged road and rail infrastructure, forced closures of businesses, disrupted cultural events, and melted snowcaps, in some cases resulting in flooding. The heat wave also caused extensive damage to agriculture across the region, resulting in substantial loss of crop yield and

7020-714: The volcanic vents of their origins have not been discovered. The canyon extends 270 kilometres (170 mi) north of Yale to the confluence of the Chilcotin River . Its southern stretch is a major transportation corridor to the Interior from the Coast , with the Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railways and the Trans-Canada Highway carved out of its rock faces, with many of the canyon's side-crevasses spanned by bridges and trestles. Prior to

7110-555: The way up to Soda Creek Canyon near Quesnel . Upstream from there the river flows in wider country, but in the Robson Valley between Prince George and Tête Jaune Cache , the river enters the Grand Canyon of the Fraser . The Black Canyon was the site of a shantytown of the same name, much of which was on catwalks on the ramparts of its dark-rock cliffs. Nearly all tributaries of the Fraser have canyons of varying scale;

7200-651: The week from June 25 to July 1. Confirmed deaths in the United States included at least 116 in Oregon (of which 72 were in Multnomah County , which includes almost all of Portland ), at least 112 in Washington , and one death in Idaho . An analysis by The New York Times suggests that around 600 excess deaths occurred the week the heat wave passed through Washington and Oregon. On June 23,

7290-687: The west side of the canyon, while the Canadian National has been on the east side. At Siska, the two railways switch sides: the CP—160-metre-long (520 ft) truss bridge—crosses to the east, the CN—on an 250-metre (810 ft) steel-arched bridge over the CP—is now on the west. The two railways now have an agreement to allow directional running through the canyon as far as Basque. All eastbound trains—CN, CP, and Via Rail's eastbound Canadian —run on

7380-426: The winter. It is notably the first place inland up the Fraser Canyon where rainfall levels are markedly lower than the rainier stretches from Yale and Spuzzum north to Hell's Gate. The climate is transitional between marine west coast and continental . The heaviest precipitation occurs in winter, which also has the strongest marine influence in most years. The continental influence is most pronounced in summer, which

7470-427: Was about 55 percent above normal for the month, and also dispatched ambulances 1,975 times on June 28th - the highest number ever recorded for the province. Delays for non-emergency calls reached up to 16 hours in extreme cases, and some ambulances were left inoperable due to a lack of staff, leading to hours-long delays. The handling of the crisis drew criticism from the paramedics unions, which forced Adrian Dix ,

7560-492: Was also observed at Lynn Lake (38.0 °C (100.4 °F)), while Churchill , on the shore of Hudson Bay , registered 34.1 °C (93.4 °F), the highest temperature for July. 25 daily records were set on July 3, including 35.0 °C (95.0 °F) in Winnipeg . Northwestern Ontario did not see all-time high records beaten, but several daily records were pushed higher: on July 3, Thunder Bay saw

7650-462: Was closed in early July 2021 and many residents of nearby Lytton were evacuated to Boston Bar after Lytton was almost completely destroyed by wildfires due to extreme temperatures. 49°51′50″N 121°26′34″W  /  49.86389°N 121.44278°W  / 49.86389; -121.44278 Fraser Canyon The canyon was formed during the Miocene period (23.7–5.3 million years ago) by

7740-619: Was even hotter on and near the Oregon-Washington border. In The Dalles, Oregon and Dallesport , on either side of the Columbia River , daytime high temperatures reached 118 °F (48 °C), tying the then all-time record for the state of Washington and beating the June statewide record by 5 degrees Fahrenheit. The same heat was measured in Tri-Cities on June 28–29. The state's new official temperature record

7830-503: Was known as the Cariboo Highway and Highway 1 until the construction and designation of the Trans-Canada Highway (circa-1962). 2021 Western North America heat wave The 2021 Western North America heat wave was an extreme heat wave that affected much of Western North America from late June through mid-July 2021. The heat wave affected Northern California , Idaho , Western Nevada , Oregon , and Washington in

7920-616: Was noted in Peshastin in Chelan County, Washington , where temperatures soared to 119 °F (48 °C) on June 29, slightly surpassing the previous all-time high for the state. On June 26, Portland broke its previous all-time record high temperature of 107 °F (42 °C), set in July ;1965 and August 1981, with a temperature of 108 °F (42 °C). It topped that record again on June 27, with

8010-487: Was set at 120 °F (49 °C) on June 29 in Hanford . The heat wave resulted in 128 all-time high temperature records set for individual weather stations across the state, including in Seattle. Temperature records were observed in the northern part of the state. South Lake Tahoe observed 91 °F (33 °C) on June 28, beating the previous June record, and tied or beaten daily records for three days in

8100-583: Was used to haul equipment and supplies during the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, beginning in the 1880s. With the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the 1880s came the destruction of key portions of the Cariboo Wagon Road , as there was no room for both railway and road on the narrow, steep mountainsides above the river. As a result, the towns of Lytton and Boston Bar were cut off from road access with

#845154