It appears winter isn’t finished with us just yet.
With a mix of rain and snow descending on the GTA, Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement for Toronto, Caledon, Mississauga, Brampton, Pickering, Oshawa, southern Durham Region, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, and Markham.
According to the national weather agency, the region could see between five and 10 centimetres of snowfall by Friday morning.
“A rain and wet snow mix is expected to move into the Greater Toronto Area early this evening as a strengthening low pressure system approaches the Great Lakes. As the low pressure passes by to the south, brisk northeasterly winds will pull in colder air and cause the precipitation to turn over to all snow this evening,” the weather advisory reads. “There remains some uncertainty as to the exact track and intensity of the low pressure area. This will affect how much snow falls across the area, as the Toronto area will be near the northern edge of this late winter snowstorm.”
Salt trucks on standby
Environment Canada says that “strong and gusty” northernly winds could create poor visibility in certain areas tonight.
The snow is expected to begin sometime after midnight and taper off by around 5 or 6 a.m. on Friday morning, according to CP24 Meterologist Chris Potter.
Potter says that the downtown core will likely only get about five centimeetres of snow, though totals could be as high as 15 centimetres in the Hamilton area.
Meanwhile, the city is gearing up for a busy night and morning.
The city’s director of transportation, Myles Currie, says that about 200 salt trucks have been placed on standby and plows will be ready to go should Toronto get a significant snowfall.
“We are monitoring the forecast right now and as the rain moves into snow we will be monitoring temperatures for freezing,” he told CP24 on Thursday afternoon. “Salting will be the first line of defence and depending on accumulation we will then be moving into plowing operations on expressways and main roadways and if our threshold of eight centimetres is reached we will move onto the side streets.”
Currie said that drivers should remember to give crews “the time and space” to clear the snow.
He also said that it is important for drivers to slow down.
“With the nice weather we have had the last week-and-a-half people may have forgot that mother nature is still around throwing winter at us,” he said.
Police urge drivers to use caution
With the bulk of the winter weather expected overnight, police are urging drivers to be cautious during their morning commute.
OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said there could be “snow and slush” on the road during the morning rush with the potential for “tough” driving conditions that “can change rapidly.”
“Give yourself lots of extra space,” he said in a video posted to Periscope on Thursday. “Space gives you time and time gives you the ability to avoid any potential issues that come up unexpectedly in front of you. “
A mix of sun and cloud is expected on Saturday and Sunday with daytime highs above the freezing mark.
Speaking with CP24 on Thursday, Environment Canada Senior Climatologist Dave Phillips conceded that the weather has taken residents on a bit of a roller coaster ride of late but he said that the winter has been a typical one for the most part.
“It is extreme and it is weird, wild and whacky when you pack it all together but you do end up getting something very close to normal,” he said. “When I look at the temperatures from this winter they have been right on normal. The amount of rainfall is near normal and we have had maybe 10 per cent more snow than normal.”
