Rain on tap (and snow for some) the 1st weekend of July in N.W.T.

July in the N.W.T. so far has been cloudy and rainy, and as we head into our first weekend of the month, it will be the same story — particularly for those in the South Slave, Dehcho and Mackenzie Delta regions. 

The weather-maker here is a low-pressure system in Alberta, which has moved from the Grande Prairie area toward High Level, Alta. On Saturday, it will move even closer to Fort Smith, N.W.T.

Saturday afternoon, rain looks to continue into both the North and South Slave regions with the risk of thunderstorms. 

This low will continue to hang around in the southern N.W.T. until Monday and will also bring rain into Nunavut communities such as Kugluktuk and Arviat.

Record-breaking rain to start July

This comes after a wet start to the month, with areas through the N.W.T. breaking daily rainfall records on July 2, including Paulatuk (14.5 mm), Sambaa K'e (29.2 mm) and Fort Simpson (32.6 mm). Since then, the rain has been pushing east out of the Dehcho, and into the communities around Great Slave Lake. 

And rainfall totals with this system could continue this trend in communities like Kugluktuk, Fort Smith, Yellowknife and Lutselk'e. 

Snow could fall in northern N.W.T. and Yukon

In northern N.W.T., an associated trough means rainfall through the territory and another low forming over the Mackenzie Delta. This will bring precipitation to communities in northern N.W.T. and Yukon through the weekend. 

And note, I didn't say rain there.

This is because temperatures are hovering around freezing overnight and conditions are favourable for a mixture of rain and snow, though we won't see a lot of accumulation. Temperatures in communities like Inuvik are set to be around 10 to 15 degrees colder than normal for this time of year. 

But those of you wanting warmth, don't panic, temperatures will head back up early next week. At the same time, the rain will also start to move out of the territory, leading to some sunnier skies.

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