Don’t let this week’s milder temperatures and rain in Southern Ontario fool you — wintry conditions are on the way for parts of the region.
Forecasts are calling for a return of the white stuff after the first real snowfall of the season in the GTA last week, with up to a staggering 50 cm slated to hit snowbelt areas further north, and some flurries headed to the city, too.
The Weather Network is warning of strong winds and “potent” snow squalls that will bring whiteout conditions to locales along the eastern and southeastern edge of Lake Huron and Georgian Bay by late Wednesday.
Parry Sound, Orillia and Tobermory are among the areas that will be hit the hardest, but other parts of the province — including the Toronto area — will not be spared from gusts of 50-70 km/h that will bring fast travelling flurries south early Thursday.
“By Thursday morning, the winds will start to briefly shift the squalls south, as they push down towards the Barrie area. Thursday night the squalls shift back north, before gradually easing into Friday morning,” TWN said in a blog post about the weather event on Tuesday.
“In all, between 30-50 cm of snow could accumulate in some of the harder-hit areas by Friday.”
Some of Ontario’s already hard-hit snowbelt regions will see another round of potent snow squalls this week.
Brace for difficult travel and whiteout conditions, with up to 50 cm risk. #ONStorm #ONwx https://t.co/VauhzzB88A
— The Weather Network (@weathernetwork) December 11, 2024
These harder-hit areas will include the above-mentioned spots, along with places like Gravenhurst, which had to declare a state of emergency due to the snowfall last week.
Though the Barrie and Orangeville area are set to receive a lesser 5-15 cm, road closures and messy driving conditions along Highway 400 are expected.
Moving further away from Georgian Bay, cities and towns such as Peterborough, Kitchener and Niagara Falls are on track for between 5 and 10 cm.
The Golden Horseshoe, including Toronto and Hamilton, will only see a few centimetres, but will be “blustery with flurries, brief bursts of heavier snow, and the coldest high temperatures of the season thus far” on Thursday, TWN says.
However, the snow will ease up by Friday, with some glimpses of sunlight amid frigid temperatures. By the weekend, we will be back to warmer-than-seasonal temps similar to the past few days, with “a messy mix of light precipitation” that could include rain and/or snow.
Ontario now bracing for as much as 100 cm of snow by end of weekend🌨️https://t.co/fEcmv0QLzj
— blogTO (@blogTO) November 28, 2024
blogTO has reached out to Environment and Climate Change Canada for more details about what’s expected in the days to come.
