Snowstorm expected to bury region later today
Winter is set to return with a vengeance.
Environment Canada issued a special weather statement warning of a major winter storm headed for north and south Niagara today.
The storm is set to hit southwestern Ontario during today and most of southern Ontario tonight through Tuesday.
“The travel conditions could be bad Tuesday morning and Monday night potentially,” Haizhen Sun, a senior weather meteorologist with Environment Canada, said on Sunday. “You’ve got windy conditions plus snowfall. Visibility could be much lower than usual.”
About 15 to 25 centimetres is expected, with the Hamilton to Niagara corridor possibly getting walloped with 30 centimetres due to added moisture from Lake Ontario.
That means north Niagara could see worse conditions than south Niagara — which woke up to a winter wonderland Sunday — for a change.
Sun said the wind is coming from the northeast over Lake Ontario and unless that changes, the north will likely be more affected. It takes a good southwesterly wind to impact the southern part of the region more.
Either way, Niagara residents out of practice for winter driving need to use caution.
“This winter it’s pretty mild. Not much snow on the ground. People get used to the mild weather and are not prepared for the sudden changes of the conditions on the road,” Sun said.
Environment Canada said a developing low pressure centre over the northwestern United States will track just south of the Great Lakes today. There’s already cold arctic air over the Great Lakes so the snow will be dry and fluffy. That will create some blowing snow as the winds pick up.
St. Catharines should see light flurries starting this afternoon and increasing to 10 cm tonight. Tuesday will see another 10 cm during the day and about 5 cm at night for a total of 25 to 30 cm in 36 hours.
Snow should taper off by Wednesday.
“It’s only March,” Sun said. “The winter for southern Ontario could extend to April. It’s still normal. We can see this kind of storm for a while still.”