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Yet another roller coaster ride of weather hit the Maritimes on Friday. A mixture of snow and freezing rain skated across the region, leaving people wondering what’s up with the weather this winter.
The wintry wallop that kicked in early back in November pretty well petered out in December, according to Environment Canada meteorologist Jill Maepea.
“For the month of December across Atlantic Canada we have seen below normal precipitation anywhere from 25 to 60 per cent.”
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The exact opposite, she said, of what the province saw back in November before winter even officially started.
A series of storms in November dumped three times the typical snowfall in parts of New Brunswick, according to her weather records, and snowfall was also above average in parts of Nova Scotia
“That had a lot to do with where the jet stream was situated. and in December the jet stream shifted so we saw less of a storm track for the Maritimes” said Meapea.
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Precipitation in December, she said, is running as much as 60 per cent below normal thorough much of Atlantic Canada.
Even with the snow that fell on Friday, some regions in the southern parts of New Brunswick are starting from scratch to rebuild a snow pack.
Meapea says the roller coaster ride of weather is expected to continue thanks to a weak El Nino that has formed in the pacific.
“This could influence our weather slightly more than anticipated.”
She said is still too soon to say if we’ll get back on track for an old fashioned winter, but the up and down weather pattern is expected to persist into the new year.
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