It is getting hot in Canada. The city of Lytton, in the province of British Columbia, measured 49.5 degrees last week – it’s never been this warmer in the North American country since records began! Extreme weather has consequences: The heat caused dozens of wildfires. It practically knocked Lytton to the ground on Thursday.
After Loo in Canada: In this way the flames quickly extinguish the whole place(01:19)
Residents are battling high temperatures. More than a hundred people have already died, and the heat has decimated them. Swiss expat Hanspeter Barth (76) is currently experiencing a mega heat wave first hand. “We have between 41 and 43 degrees here,” he tells Blick. Barth lives with his wife in a self-built chalet outside the small village of Harrop – in the province of British Columbia, which has been hit hard by the heat.
Barth is worried. Because due to the storm, there is a fire in the forest about 60 km away. Some people have already had to be evicted. “We see smoke from here,” he says. His own house is surrounded by trees.
“It’s too hot right now”
The family is battling the heat with a few fans and the shutters are also closed. But nothing helps. It gets uncomfortably hot even in the early morning hours. “It’s so hot right now—so hot that you can even fry scrambled eggs outside,” says Barth. “We sleep and therefore eat in the basement.”
Because the house is well insulated, it is nice and cool there. Most of the other residents in the area will not benefit. The buildings are simpler than in Switzerland. Many people will also live in caravan houses – the so-called trailers.
The heat wave makes it possible: Here a fried egg is also fried in the sun(01:00)
the heat continues
The recession is not visible at the moment. As the weather goes this week, stay warm this week, Barth says. A heat wave also means boredom for Swiss expatriates. Because there’s not much you can do at these high temperatures.
After all: Kootene Lake is very close. The barth can be cooled there if necessary. As the lake fills with meltwater, it is only 20 degrees – a welcome refreshment.
