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Balmy afternoon makes for warmest March 23 on record in St. John's

The warm weather may be short lived, but Saturday was the warmest March 23 on record in St. John's.

Samantha Roch with Environment Canada's weather office in Gander says as of 3:30 p.m., the high temperature was 12.4 C, breaking the previous record of 10.2 C in set in 1984.

The official record temperature for the day hasn't been recorded just yet though, Roch said, as all the data from the day will still need to be reviewed.

Roch said the pleasant afternoon was the result of a warm push from the south.

"A low came up across the Eastern Seaboard and brought some warm, somewhat moist air with it," she said.

"So when the sun broke out and the clouds cleared a little bit, temperatures rose enough to break a record."

Meg Roberts/CBC
Meg Roberts/CBC

And when the sun came out, so did the people.

Allyson O'Brien and her family braved a long line at The Parlour on Military Road to get a scoop of gelato.

"It almost feels like a heat wave-type weather," she said. "It's nice to get out with no winter jackets on and lose all the bulky items."

Meg Roberts/CBC
Meg Roberts/CBC

It was less spring cleaning and more summer strolls for Sherry Del Rizzo and her family, who took their dog for a walk through Bannerman Park.

"You don't know when the sun is going to come out again to you just have to leave everything at home. Stop the cleaning, drop the cloth, get outside," Del Rizzo said.

"It felt like summer for a few minutes."

Record 'actually kind of low'

But, the deck may have been stacked in favour of historic temperatures on Saturday.

"The record today is actually kind of low," Roch said.

"The temperature today wouldn't have broken a record yesterday, and it wouldn't break a record tomorrow."

And that record breaking warmth is brief.

St. John's remains under a rainfall warning, with showers expected to change to flurries late Saturday with 10 to 20 millimetres of rain forecast.

Roch said a cold spell is expected to follow the rain, with temperatures dropping below zero early next week.

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