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No end in sight to cold snap in London: Environment Canada

Environment Canada says temperatures could reach -30 C. Stock / MEDIA BEACON

Christmas may have come and gone, but it looks like Jack Frost may be here to stay.

With temperatures dropping to near -30 C, Environment Canada is reminding everyone to cover up.

The national weather reporting agency had issued an extreme cold warning early Wednesday morning, but it has since ended.

“The threshold that we use for southwestern Ontario for an extreme cold warning is a wind chill of -30 C,” said Peter Kimbell, warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment Canada.

“We came close to that Wednesday morning. We may not actually exceed that, but regardless, it’s very cold and people need to take precautions.”

READ MORE: Environment Canada issues extreme cold warnings across Canada

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The national weather reporting agency says a cold air mass has combined with a light west wind to cause near extreme cold temperatures. While the temperature sits between -16 C and -20 C, wind chill values will push the mercury down into the -25 C to -30 C range.

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But the agency says for those closer to the lake shore, temperatures will be slightly warmer.

For those who live inland, temperatures will reach their peak of -12 C, feeling more like -20 C, at around 3 p.m. That’s about 11 degrees colder than the average high for Dec. 27, -1 C.

Temperatures will then drop to -18 C overnight, feeling like -25 C with the wind chill.

Asked when the cold snap will end, Kimbell said not anytime soon.

“We don’t really see an end to [the cold] at this point in our forecast. The forecast, which goes out seven days, continues to see cold weather even into Tuesday — the second of January — there’ll be a high of -9 C, which is seven degrees below normal.”
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Although it is going to be very cold, Kimbell says there’s a very low risk of flurries in the London area.

Kimbell warns extreme cold puts everyone at increased risk of frostbite and hypothermia, and is reminding everyone to cover up and be sure to check on older family, friends and neighbours.

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