Environment Canada warns of freezing rain, winds up to 80 km/h later today in Toronto

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The winter weather travel advisory we told you about last night is still in effect for Toronto.

Environment Canada, however, has since updated it to reflect the possibility of both a brief period of freezing rain as well as widespread wind gusts reaching as high as 80 km/h.

It’s safe to say that the winter wonderland we woke up to this morning is not going to stick around long. If you’re looking at a commute home later today please give yourself extra time and drive as defensively as possible. The last time we had weather like this more than 500 collisions were reported in the GTA in a single day.

According to The Weather Network, rain should start falling in Toronto around 4 pm today.

The Weather Network

Here is the full weather advisory statement from Environment Canada:

A winter weather travel advisory is in effect for today into this evening.

Snowfall accumulations near 10 cm are likely today. Brief freezing rain is possible in some areas during the changeover from snow to rain this afternoon. Local blowing snow is also expected as winds increase throughout the day.

There may be a significant impact to the morning commute and possibly the afternoon one as well for regions where the change to rain occurs later. Untreated roads may become snow covered and slippery.
Motorists should plan for extra time to reach their destination today.

Winds will increase early this evening with widespread gusts to 80 km/h likely. Stronger wind gusts to 90 km/h are expected in some regions near Lake Huron and Lake Erie where a wind warning is in effect.

The weather system responsible is a Colorado low that will affect much of the province.

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