A cold weather alert has been issued by the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU) as Environment Canada calls for temperatures to dip as low as -14 C Thursday night and over the weekend.
The alert, the third this year, takes effect Thursday evening and will continue until Monday, said an MHLU release.
According to the national weather agency, the London region will see a frigid end to the work week and an equally frigid weekend. Lows of -14 C are expected Thursday and Friday nights, while lows of -4 C and -12 C are expected on Saturday night and Sunday night, respectively.
Highs will stay below zero over the next several days. Environment Canada says the mercury will only rise to a high of -9 C on Friday, -4 C on Saturday, and -2 C on Sunday.
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Starting the work week, Monday will see a high of only -7 C, and a low of -11 C in the evening.
With the temperatures we’re expecting, Walker says, exposed skin can be damaged by the cold in a matter of minutes. Overexposure to extreme cold can result in frostbite and hypothermia, the health unit says.
Symptoms of frostbite include skin turning red or blue, or grey/white in later stages, pain, numbness and stiffness. Londoners are reminded to not to rub an area affected by frostbite, but to warm it by placing it next to warmer skin or immersing it in warm — not hot — water.
With hypothermia, a condition in which the body’s temperature drops below normal, symptoms can include pale skin, lethargy, confusion and hallucinations. While shivering is part of the early stages of hypothermia, a person may shiver less as the body temperature drops. In severe cases, a person might lose consciousness, breathe shallowly, and have an irregular or hard-to-detect pulse.
A city-issued list of warming centres and emergency shelters can be found on the London.ca website. The city can also be contacted at homelessprevention@london.ca or at 519-661-2489, ext. 1852.
The health unit says anyone who witnesses someone outdoors and in distress from the cold should contact London CAReS at 519-667-2273, or 911 if it’s a medical emergency.
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