As heat wave continues, Calgarians — 4 legged and otherwise — find ways to cool off
CBC
With a heat wave in much of Western Canada stretching into its third day, Calgarians, people and animals alike, are finding ways to cool off.
Nearly all of Alberta remains under a heat warning issued by Environment Canada. The weather agency predicts the hottest temperatures are expected on Wednesday, with temperatures reaching 35 C. Overnight, temperatures are expected to stay through the high teens and early 20s.
On Tuesday, CBC News spoke to several families who chose to pause their Calgary Stampede plans and instead hit the banks of the Bow River.
Travis Stehmeier travelled with his family from Utah to take part in the 10-day festival.
"We're gonna take a break [from the Stampede] today ... so we'll take it easy at the river here," said Stehmeier.
"I just got out of [the water], so I'm feeling really good right now, but it's been a toasty week I would say ... this has been really nice and refreshing."
Anne Marie Lambert, another out-of-towner, is from Quebec, where she says more homes have air conditioning.
"It's kind of different cultural shock for me."
"I guess I'm getting used to the heat, I'm getting used to sleeping in hot weather, and during the day, we're going to [the river]."
On Monday night, the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) issued a grid alert for more than an hour due to supply concerns.
AESO said it was triggered by an unplanned outage at a natural gas power plant, and an outage on a power line outside of Alberta which affected the amount of electricity that could be imported into the province.
While AESO is forecasting adequate supply for this week, given the ongoing high temperatures, the grid operator says Albertans can help by trying to conserve power, especially during the 4 to 7 p.m. period when electricity use typically peaks.
The last summer peak record for electricity was set in June 2021, said AESO, but at times, the amount of electricity being used this week has started to approach that level.
Over at the Calgary Zoo/Wilder Institute, polar bears used to Arctic temperatures splashed in their own private pool.
