Residents of Central and Eastern Canada are giving thanks this long weekend for sunny, warm weather as unseasonably high temperatures blanket several cities.
On Sunday, Torontonians soaked up the sun on the beach and children played in the park as the mercury reached 27 degrees Celsius, according to Environment Canada. With the humidex, it felt more like 30 C.
The average high for Toronto at this time of the year is 15 C.
"It's a hot day, the hottest Thanksgiving weekend I've seen in a long, long time," a beach volleyball player told CTV Toronto on Sunday.
Edmond Gura, a beach-goer in Toronto, said he was spending the day by the waterfront to enjoy the weather before temperatures dip.
"We're enjoying the last day of summer before it ends," he said.
Fredericton and Ottawa reached a high of 28 C on Sunday, smashing a record in the nation's capital that was set back in 1949. Windsor, Ont. hit a high of 27 C.
With a predicted high of 25 C for Sunday, Montreal was set to tie its record for the hottest Oct. 9. The record was set in 1958.
However, a list compiled by Environment Canada of temperatures for major Canadian cities said Montreal fell shy of the mark by one degree.
In Toronto, the highest temperature recorded for Oct. 9 was 28.3 C in 1949.
For Thanksgiving Monday, forecasters have the following predictions:
- Toronto 25 C
- Ottawa 25 C
- Windsor 25 C
- Montreal 23 C
While many Canadians are soaking up the sunshine in between bites of turkey, the western provinces are seeing cooler temperatures. Vancouver was expected to be a sunny 16 C with a turkey day forecast of 12 C and rain.
Calgary was expected to reach just 14 C on Sunday, with a high of 12 C in the forecast for Monday. Cloudy and 13 C was the forecast for Winnipeg Sunday, with showers predicted for the overnight hours. While the city may hit 19 C Monday, the rain is expected to continue off-and-on all day.
