ABOVE: Much of Canada is in the grips of an Arctic blast that is dropping temperatures to record-low levels. Mike Armstrong reports.
TORONTO – If you’re looking to get away from the cold, consider a trip to Iqaluit.
In Ontario and Manitoba, temperatures ranged from -18 C in Toronto, to -26 C in Winnipeg. Iqaluit? a balmy -8 C.
Even Whitehorse was -7 C.
“Up in Iqaluit it’s a different air mass that’s affecting them,” said Geoff Coulson, Warning Preparedness Meteorologist with Environment Canada. “They’re actually getting a flow coming up from the east and it’s not tapping into the same depth of cold that the central part of Canada is, which is coming down more from the Arctic Circle.”
READ MORE: Toronto under extreme cold weather alert, wind chill warning
The cold Arctic air is being funnelled southward and is gripping most of the country, from Regina to St. John’s.
West of Regina, it seems that cities are experiencing slightly higher than normal temperatures, with Vancouver expected to reach a high of 7 C (norm is 6), Calgary 8 C (norm is -3 C), and Edmonton -1 C (norm is -8 C).
On the east coast, St. John’s, Nfld. was a chilly -15 C on Thursday, far below the city’s norm of 1 C for this time of year. Montreal was -25 C which is also far below its daytime norm of -5 C.
“We’ve seen cold outbreaks before that have influenced a good portion of the country, east of the Rockies. What’s a little bit different about this one is the depth of cold and also the longevity of the event.”
- Foreign interference ‘undermined’ public confidence in elections: inquiry
- Thousands of Canada’s rail workers have a strike mandate. What happens now?
- Canada, Manitoba to develop Red Dress Alert for missing Indigenous women and girls
- Fall COVID-19 vaccine guidelines are out. Here’s what NACI recommends
In Manitoba, Winnipeg recorded its second-coldest December since 1893.
In Ontario, Sioux Lookout, had its coldest December since records began in 1938.
“The pipeline that we’re seeing extends down from Nunuavut through parts of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. And then Ontario, Quebec, the Maritimes, Newfoundland and Labrador, they’re all under that influence.”
Though warmer weather is heading into Ontario and Quebec, it won’t last for long. Not only that, but parts of both provinces could see a major snow storm develop over the weekend.
“We’ve had cold winters before, we’ve had snowy winters before, but this is bringing both of them together.”
A system with significant moisture is expected to move into the area on Saturday into Sunday. It could result in snowfall of 20 cm or more for southern and eastern Ontario and move into Quebec.
VIDEO: Satellite image of massive winter storm system
Comments