Hatters and their four-legged friend were out enjoying more record temperatures Thursday as the mercury peaked at 15.7 C at 3 p.m., beating a previous daytime high temperature of 12.2 C recorded in 1991.--NEWS PHOTO BRENDAN MILLER
newsdesk@medicinehatnews.com
For the second day in a row Medicine Hat hit a temperature record as unseasonable warm conditions continued Thursday, reaching 15.7C at 3 p.m.
According to government weather records, the previous high temperature record of 12.2C was set in 1991.
Last year at this time weather conditions in the Hat were much different. The city reached a high of -20.4 on Feb. 5, 2025 as a polar vortex system brought in extreme cold temperatures from Feb. 2-20, with temperatures reaching as low as -34.1C on Feb. 17.
On Wednesday more than 20 locations in the province set new daytime high records, including Medicine Hat, Brooks, Waterton Park and Pincher Creek. Additionally, the nation’s hot spot on Wednesday was Lethbridge, with temperatures reaching 20.6 C, and Bow Island following closely at 20.3C.
Forecasters say the warm weather is being caused by a dominant ridge of high pressure, and they expect that system to stick around leading to above-zero temperatures leading into next week.
Environment Canada is forecasting warm weather and mainly sunny conditions into the middle of next week, however forecasters are not predicting anymore record-breaking conditions in that time.
So far in 2026, Medicine Hat has experienced four days of record-breaking highs, including a daytime high of 12.2C set on Jan. 13 and a daytime high of 14C set on Jan. 14.
