Brace yourself for another violent winter storm beginning in the last week of February. With the onset of spring in a few weeks, Ontario will continue to see wintry weather across the province.
That forecast will sound like a repeat after the destructive storm that swept through the province last week. Similar to this latest storm, we will see widespread snow, ice and rain Monday night that will continue through Tuesday in some areas.
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This time, however, a smaller area will be at risk from ice, and total snowfall accumulations will be less than the last Colorado low.
Prior to this chaotic system, much of southern Ontario has special weather reports.
A stormy Colorado low will invade the Great Lakes on Monday, with late afternoon precipitation spilling over southern Ontario. The morning commute is expected to be fine for almost everyone, but Monday evening’s commute will be absolute chaos for some as untreated surfaces can get icy and slippery.
Snow will fall on the north side of the system, with a troublesome mix of snow, ice pellets, freezing rain, and the rain focus along the shores of Lake Erie.
As warmer air moves in, we will see a transition to ice pellets and patchy freezing rain southwest of the greater Toronto area, but not before the aforementioned region records between 5 and 10 cm of snowfall.
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Cottage Country and Eastern Ontario will witness the heaviest snowfalls, with most areas receiving nearly 10 inches of snowfall, with about 15 inches falling over the Ottawa area.
Gusty winds of up to 70km/h will mean limited visibility on the roads surrounding the GTA on Monday evening, leaving drivers with difficult wintry driving conditions. Local power outages are also possible.
“Winter weather travel advice may be required as the event approaches,” Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) said in its special weather statement.
Winds will then blow towards the southwest on Tuesday, bringing a puff of warmer air to the area. Along the Golden Horseshoe, snow will turn to rain on the back half of the system Tuesday morning.
The greatest likelihood of light ice accretion from freezing rain is along portions of the Niagara Escarpment, stretching from Kincardine to Chatham and east toward Hamilton.
Although conditions will improve in the southwest on Tuesday, Ottawa and eastern Ontario will continue to snow heavily.
Stay tuned to The Weather Network for more information on where these precipitation disparities will form and how this storm will affect Ontario to begin the workweek.
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