Toronto’s medical officer of health has issued an extreme cold weather alert ahead of a big drop in the temperature Sunday night.
The temperature is expected to drop to -17 C overnight with a wind chill of -24 C lasting through Monday morning.
“While temperatures will rebound during daylight hours on Monday, it will still be a lot colder than normal,” Global News weather specialist Mike Arsenault said.
The cold temperatures won’t let up throughout at least the first half of the week, with lows hovering around -15 C without the windchill until Wednesday.
“This weekend, temperatures should rebound closer to freezing and closer to the norm for this time of year,” Arsenault said.
The normal high temperature for this time of year is 2 C.
“The plus side is the cold temps will bring a quiet pattern of weather for the rest of the week,” Arsenault said.
“Just a few flurries expected on and off over the next few days.”
Extreme cold weather alerts are issued when the temperature is expected to drop to at least -15 C or -20 C with the windchill.
Services aimed at getting vulnerable residents inside are activated when an alert is issued.
A warming centre will be open by 7 p.m. Sunday and remain open until noon on the day the alert is terminated.
There will also be additional outreach workers on the streets and the availability of transit tokens will also be increased at drop-in centres.
Residents are advised to call 311 or visit this website for information on respite centres and shelters.
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