Environment Canada has issued a snowfall warning and winter storm watch in central and southern Saskatchewan.
The agency said the province will be impacted by two separate storms this weekend.
On Saturday, the first is forecast to work its way through Saskatchewan, bringing 10 to 15 cm of snowfall to regions of west-central and central Saskatchewan.
Snowfall will begin Saturday morning and will likely be quite wet at first, but will start accumulating quickly in the afternoon. The snow is expected to gradually taper off Saturday evening.
“This is going to be the kind of snow that’s difficult to shovel. It’s very heavy, especially the first batch that’s falling around the freezing mark,” said Global News meteorologist Peter Quinlan.
However, the second system is forecast to move through the south half of the province on Sunday, bringing more snow and blowing snow.
The agency said this storm could bring a further 15 to 20 cm of snow to central parts of Saskatchewan, namely Saskatoon, Martensville, Melfort, and Kindersley regions. They added, at this time, Prince Albert and North Battleford look to only pick up a few extra centimeters of snow with the system moving through on Sunday.
On Sunday, Environment Canada warns winds will be increasing with gusts to 60 kilometres per hour and advises people prepare for reduced visibilities in blowing snow.
The agency said blizzard conditions are possible and may continue into Sunday night.
“We’re going to have reduced visibility, we’re going to have winds gusting up to 60 km/h as the snow falls,” Quinlan said.
“So we actually could see a blizzard warning if we have four consecutive hours of 400-metre visibility or less, especially on Sunday.”
Environment Canada cautioned the timing and intensity of the storm could shift somewhat as the system approaches, but said the current consensus is that 30 to 50 cm of snow will cover most of the watch area by Monday morning.
Driving conditions are expected to deteriorate as the system passes through and Environment Canada said travel should be avoided.
Rapidly accumulating snow could make travelling difficult and visibility may be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow.
The latest road conditions can be found on Saskatchewan’s Highway Hotline.
Officials said anyone heading out should keep others informed of their schedule and destination and carry an emergency kit that includes drinking water, food, medicine, a first-aid kit and a flashlight.
Download the SkyTracker weather app for the latest conditions and warnings.
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