Frigid -48.5°C breaks 15-year-old record for the Chilcotin region

With a daytime high forecast at -5°C, Vancouverites will almost certainly be complaining about the city’s coldest day of the year.

However, residents in the chilly Chilcotin region of northern BC are being told to avoid the outdoors all together as temperatures dip to nearly -50°C.

According to Environment Canada, the Chilcotin region registered at -48.5°C Tuesday morning, breaking the previous cold record of -43.4°C for Jan. 14 which was set in 2005.

It may be -10 to -15 with the wind chill over the South Coast this morning but the Chilcotin is -48.5C this morning and that's without the wind chill! Coldest Jan 14th since 2005... #Brrrr

Extreme cold warnings are in effect: https://t.co/hEupvk2Nbo #BCStorm #BundleUp pic.twitter.com/ddr43kH3RB

— ECCC Weather British Columbia (@ECCCWeatherBC) January 14, 2020

The bitterly cold Arctic ridge of high pressure bringing extreme cold to the north, east and central parts of BC is hitting the province next door even harder.

Environment Canada has placed not just one or two regions, but the entire province of Alberta under an extreme cold weather warning.

According to the warning, Albertans are facing wind chill values as low as -45°C to -50°C.

Thankfully, meteorologists are forecasting the high pressure ridge responsible for the extreme cold to move out of western Canada by the weekend.

But be sure to bundle up and keep your pet indoors until then!