Toronto shivered through its coldest day of the year so far Sunday as frigid artic air and strong northerly winds combined to make the temperature feel close to – 40 C with the wind chill.
The temperature at Pearson International Airport at 6 a.m. was – 25 C and that temperature rose just a few degrees through the day. As of 10 p.m., the temperature in the city sat at – 21 C, however that number was expected to dip to -24 C overnight.
Winds of between 40 km/h and 60 km/h were also forecast Sunday, creating the possibility for blowing snow throughout the city.
As a result of the sub-zero temperatures and blustery conditions, Environment Canada has issued an extreme cold warning and is advising residents to “exercise extreme caution” while outdoors as frostbite could occur on exposed skin with “a few minutes.”
The City of Toronto also remains under an extreme cold weather alert that was first issued on Thursday.
The all-time record low for Feberuary 15 is -31.1 C (1943) and it is possible that tonight's temperature will flirt with that. Elsewhere in Southern Ontario, records have already been snapped for this date with Hamilton (-25.6 C), Windsor (-22.4 C) and Waterloo (-26.8 C) all recording new all-time lows.
Travel affected
Dozens of flights in and out of Pearson International Airport were cancelled Sunday amid the frigid temperatures. The Airport said ground crews were working in extreme cold to keep planes moving, but advised travelers Sunday to check the status of their flights online before heading to the airport.
An increase in roadside service calls has also been seen with CAA reporting that it had recieved 4,300 requests by 1:30 p.m., most of them battery-related.
“It’s not good. It’s really, really not good,” CP24 Weather Specialist Jamie Gutfreund said Sunday morning. “It feels like – 41 C right now and it is not going to warm up much.”
Power outages reported
Amid the bitter cold, about 4,000 customers were left without power in an Etobicoke neighbourhood early Sunday morning.
The outage, which was reported at around 4:30 a.m., resulted from defective overhead equipment caused by the extreme cold, according to Toronto Hydro.
Within a few hours power was restored to the majority of customers, however about 750 in an area bounded by Royal York Road, Eglinton Avenue, Westridge Road and Hwy. 27 remained in the dark until around 2:30 p.m.
Power was restored to all customers shortly before 4 p.m.
"The extreme cold temperatures in concert with the high winds caused some damage to our overhead equipment and the ongoing cold temperatures are slowing us down a bit," Toronto Hydro spokesperson Christina Basil told CP24.
Though the temperature will climb slightly after today, the bitter cold will linger with a high of – 13 and a wind chill value of – 32 C forecast for Family Day on Monday.
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