Unseasonably warm weather and a glut of natural gas reserves that has pushed prices to their lowest levels in 10 years meant people in Prince George were able to save on their home heating costs in the month of February.
The 29 days of month were on average warmer and drier than normal in the city.
Aside from a few cold days from Feb. 5-8, a brief cool-down from Feb. 14-15, and a couple frigid snowy days near the end of the month, we escaped winter's bite relatively unscathed.
While January brought some of the coldest Arctic air in several winters to Prince George, with windchills dipping well into the -40 C range, the coldest day in February was -22 C of the 26th -- a far cry from the record low for the month of -45 C set in 1956.
The average high temperature was 0.0 C, slightly above the normal high of -0.8 C, while the average daily low of -9 C was one degree above normal. February's mean temperature of -4.5 C was also one degree above average. The warmest day of the month was the 12th, when the mercury reached 3.7 C.
The month brought snowfall amounts of 29 centimetres, within 96 per cent of the average 30.1 cm, but just 0.6 millimetres of rain fell, eight per cent of the normal 7.2 mm. Total precipitation amounted to 20.7 mm, 65 per cent of the normal 31.4 mm.
The highest snow total for any one day in the month happened on the 24th, when 10 cm was recorded. There was measurable precipitation on eight days, less than the normal in February of 13 days.
March came in like a lamb, with near-normal temperatures for most of the first four days on the month. Today's forecast calls for a high of -2 C with a low of -8 C. More snow is expected Tuesday, with the high reaching the freezing mark after an overnight low on -10 C.
Daylight savings time starts early next Sunday morning, March 11, when we turn the clocks ahead by one hour.
