(rdnewsNOW file photo)

By Ian Gustafson

Summer weather

ECCC reports drier than normal July in Red Deer, despite rainy perception

Jul 31, 2025 | 12:44 PM

What may have felt like an overly rainy month for the City of Red Deer, in reality was below average for precipitation in July for the region.

That according to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) which says looking at Alberta as a whole, it was a very different story in July depending on where you reside. Officials say the southern region experienced a very wet month while the central and northern regions were drier.

“Red Deer was kind of right in the middle of it all,” said Christy Climenhaga, scientist with Environment and Climate Change Canada. “Believe it or not your numbers for July as of [Wednesday] are sitting at 73.1 millimetres of precipitation, which is actually below what your normal is for the month.”

Typically, the Red Deer area receives approximately 90 mm of precipitation in July but Climenhaga said despite it being a little bit drier than normal, the community was close to being in the realm of around normal.

The community did have a few significant rain falls including one day of 10 to 15 mm.

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Looking at the historical records, Climenhaga said Red Deer has usually had very wet July’s, with the wettest on record being in 1999 with 274.4 mm of rain. Meantime, the driest on record was in 1917 with only 10.4 mm of precipitation.

“When you’re looking at summer precipitation, especially in Alberta, it can be a little volatile. You could get a big thunderstorm that drops almost a months worth of precipitation in one day and a couple of thunderstorms that really just tip the scale and put you well above average. Or there could be a lot of rain and thunderstorms around the Red Deer area but not reporting at the site. It’s something to keep in mind, there is that variability,” she added.

Looking ahead to August, Environment and Climate Change Canada anticipates a warmer than normal trend in the northern region, with Red Deer on the border of that with a bit lower confidence.

That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be hot every day, it means their models are pulling in data that shows a better chance of more above normal days or the risk of more heat.

As for precipitation, there is still a wetter trend expected for southern Alberta including the Red Deer area.

“In the near future, we’ve got some heat and it looks like August is going to start on a hot note for much of Alberta. Red Deer is on the border of that but they’ll be near the 30s over the next few days.”