In Canada, 3 Months' Worth of Rain in a Single Day

A brutal summer continues up north
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jul 23, 2023 8:55 AM CDT
In Canada, 3 Months' Worth of Rain in a Single Day
A man paddles a kayak through floodwater at a baseball diamond in Halifax on Saturday, July 22, 2023.   (Darren Calabrese /The Canadian Press via AP)

Canada isn't just battling wildfires and record heat this summer. Four people are missing after intense thunderstorms dumped record amounts of rain across a wide swath of the Atlantic coast province of Nova Scotia over the past two days, causing flash flooding, road washouts, and power outages, per the AP. Some areas got the equivalent of three months' of rain in a single day, notes CNN. The floods submerged multiple vehicles, and Royal Canadian Mounted Police spokeswoman Cindy Bayers said two such incidents in West Hants north of Halifax have left two adults and two children missing.

Torrential downpours started on Friday afternoon across the Halifax region, dumping more than 7.8 inches of rain over a wide area. The port city typically receives about 3.5 to 3.9 inches of rain during an average July. Based on radar estimates and unofficial observations, Environment Canada said on Saturday that some areas may have received nearly 12 inches in 24 hours. "We got three months' worth of rain in less than 24 hours," said Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston. "It came fast and it came furious."

Radar maps show the heaviest rainfall extending along the province's southwestern shore to a point north of Halifax. In the Hammonds Plains area, northwest of the city, flooding washed out driveways and the shoulders of many roads. That's the same area where where 151 homes and businesses were destroyed by a wildfire that started on May 28, forcing evacuations that affected 16,000 residents. And for much of the past week, the Halifax area has been sweltering under an immobile dome of humidity—a rare event so close to the coast. (More Canada stories.)

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