BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA, UNITED STATES - 2021/08/23: A group of children play with water from an open fire hydrant at W. 12th Street and N. Lindbergh Drive near the Crestmont housing area in Bloomington. Police and the Bloomington Fire Department eventually showed up to stop the water. A National Weather Service weather statement was released for parts of Indiana including the Bloomington area, Peak afternoon heat index values Tuesday through Thursday will be as high as 100 to 105 degrees across much of central Indiana. This can cause heat illness with prolonged exposure. Heat illness can overtake you quickly. Temperatures in the 90s are expected throughout this week. (Photo by Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

VANCOUVER — Heat warnings have been posted across much of British Columbia as Environment Canada predicts temperatures up to 40 C in some regions.

The warnings cover an area from the inner south coast, including Victoria and Metro Vancouver, to the Okanagan, and as far north as the Bulkley Valley and Terrace and Kitimat on the northern coast.

The weather office says highs in many areas away from the water could reach the upper 30s, but the mercury is expected to nudge 40 C for locations including Kamloops, Vernon, the Okanagan and Boundary regions and much of the Kootenay.

Environment Canada says the heat may not relent until Saturday.

The B.C. government issued an alert about the coming heat wave last week, urging people to make a plan to stay safe and either identify cooler areas in their home or find a community cooling area such as local libraries or malls.

The situation has also worsened the wildfire situation with two dozen fires starting in the last two days, although the fire burning near Lytton remains the only wildfire of note and is still considered out of control.

The Canadian Press

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