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Heavy rain on the way

Heavy rain on the way Yukoners in the southeast of the territory should brace for continued inclement weather this weekend.

Yukoners in the southeast of the territory should brace for continued inclement weather this weekend.

As of Thursday evening, Doug Lundquist, Environment Canada’s Yukon meteorologist, said heavy rain can be expected for the next 24 to 36 hours, with the worst of it coming Friday afternoon.

The heaviest rain is expected to fall along the southeast border of Yukon and Northwest Territories - with some predictions calling for as much as 100 millimetres.

Backcountry users and boaters have been cautioned to be prepared for sudden rises in streams and rivers, as well as road and trail washouts.

Lundquist said the rain is the result of an upper-level low pressure system moving through the area. A similar storm recently poured heavy rain onto Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

The storm is drawing air up from Alberta, Saskatchewan and even south of the border into America.

Between Skagway and Whitehorse there’s a band of pressure that’s extending from the southeast corner of Yukon and then further north in an arc and then back south and into the Pacific Ocean. That’s the area that’s really going to get heavy rain, Lundquist said.

As of Friday morning the South Klondike Highway was closed between Carcross and Skagway due to heavy rain and falling rocks.

The rain should begin to taper off Saturday morning.

June had fairly average precipitation, and was one degree cooler than usual, with the average temperature registering for the month at 11.2 degrees Celsius. The average is 12.3 C.

May, though two degrees warmer than average, had more rain with an average of 23 mm compared to 16 mm.

Lundquist said Yukoners should be expecting warmer than average temperatures for the rest of July and August, as air from the Gulf of Alaska continues to move into the territory.