Freezing rain hits southern Ontario, closing schools, jamming traffic

An ice storm working its way across southern Ontario shuttered schools and snarled traffic on Wednesday, but Environment Canada said the weather wasn’t expected to be as severe as similar events in the recent past.

Warning preparedness meteorologist Peter Kimbell said the agency has issued freezing rain warnings for a large swath of the province, covering the Greater Toronto Area, extending west to Lake Huron and south to Lake Erie. Precipitation is expected north of those areas as well, though Kimbell said it will be more likely to take the form of ice pellets and snow.

Ice accumulation will likely range between five and 15 millimetres in impacted areas, Kimbell said, largely falling short of maximums of 30 millimetres set during ice storms that blanketed eastern Ontario in 1998 and the Toronto region in 2013.

“It’s certainly significant,” Kimbell said, citing the impact on schools and transportation. “But it’s not in the same category as the bigger ice storms that we’ve seen before.”

Kimbell said impacted regions would likely experience the worst of the storm throughout Wednesday morning and early afternoon, with the freezing rain expected to taper off.

Hydro issues are possible in areas where ice buildup topples tree branches or otherwise impacts power lines, but Kimbell said relatively low winds should limit the number of potential outages.

The effects of the storm should be further mitigated on Thursday, he said, when sub-zero temperatures climb above the freezing mark for much of the impacted area and help melt some of the accumulated ice.

Many school boards and some post-secondary institutions cancelled classes and bus routes.

The University of Toronto, Ryerson University, all Humber College campuses, Seneca College and the University of Guelph’s Humber campus cancelled classes for the day.

The Peel District School Board, Waterloo Region and Waterloo Catholic District School Boards, Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board and Halton District School Board were among those that closed schools and suspended bus service for the day.

Hamilton-Wentworth spokesperson Shawn McKillop said board policy dictates that except in rare circumstances, no classes are in session when buses are cancelled during “severe weather events.”

Such calls, he said, are made by the director of education after “spotters” drive predetermined inclement weather routes and report their findings before 5:45 a.m.