When will winter end?!? Edmonton could see coldest start to April in 16 years

If you feel like spring is taking its sweet time arriving in Edmonton, you’re not wrong.

“If you think the start of this April is shaping up to look quite cold, you’re absolutely right,” Global Edmonton chief meteorologist Jesse Beyer said.

The last time the region saw an April 1-7 forecast all below zero was in 2002.

That means the frigid first week of April forecast could be the coldest Edmonton has seen in 16 years.

The last two Aprils, by comparison, have been balmy, perhaps making this year feel even chillier.

“We’ve been so above seasonal for the past two years,” Beyer said. “It’s kind of been one extreme to the other.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We've been so above seasonal for the past two years," Beyer said. "It's kind of been one extreme to the other."

In 2017 and 2016, the first week of April saw average highs near the 12 C to 15 C range. This year, temperatures could be nearly 20 degrees colder over the same time period!

“The first week of April in the past two years has been much warmer than what we’re dealing with for the first week of April 2018,” Beyer said.

The average daytime high for the first week of April is 8 C. This week, Edmonton could be 10 to 15 C colder than that.

Watch below: The first week of April is expected to be the coldest one experienced in Edmonton in 16 years. Jack Haskins looks at how the below-seasonal temperatures are creating a problem for some local businesses.

1:51 Edmonton braces for coldest start to April in 16 years

Temperatures won’t likely claw their way to above zero until the start of the second week in April.

“We’re locked in for the better portion of the first half of April to well below seasonal temperatures,” Beyer said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We're locked in for the better portion of the first half of April to well below seasonal temperatures," Beyer said.

“Unfortunately, with those warm temperatures, it does look like a little more snow is on the way as well.”

READ MORE: Alberta sets new records as temperatures drop 15 degrees in mere minutes Saturday 

Easter weekend in Alberta saw some pretty wintry conditions.

For three locations – Red Deer, Grande Prairie and Pincher Creek — March 31 was the coldest on record, according to Environment Canada.

A cold front passed through the southwest corner of the province on Saturday morning, dropping temperatures in places like Cardston by 15 degrees in just one hour.

READ MORE: Calgary expecting the coldest Easter weekend since 1940

A snowfall warning in southern Alberta Monday is calling for up to 20 centimetres, but any accumulation isn’t expected to last more than a few days.

Environment Canada’s senior climatologist says he’s surprised how long winter is lasting on the Prairies and warns the cold temperatures could persist through the end of April.

David Phillips blames a polar vortex for the current spring cold snap.

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— With a file from The Canadian Press