Snow is forecast for a wide swath of Alberta and up to 40 cm may fall
Get those shovels back out because a large chunk of Alberta is under the gun for some fresh snow, with some areas forecast to see up to 40 centimetres.
Snowfall warnings were issued by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) on Sunday for numerous spots across Alberta, with some of the Rockies forecast to be walloped by snow.
For spots in the Jasper and Banff National Park areas, ECCC says heavy snow with total amounts of 10 to 25 cm is expected. Higher snowfall totals up to 40 cm are possible over higher terrain by Monday morning.
Periods of snow began last night and will intensify over Jasper National Park today, while snow will intensify over Banff National Park by this evening, with snow totals being highly variable due to local terrain effects. Snow will end by Monday morning.
“Rapidly accumulating snow could make travel difficult over some locations. Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become difficult to navigate due to accumulating snow. Be prepared to adjust your driving with changing road conditions. If visibility is reduced while driving, slow down, watch for tail lights ahead and be prepared to stop,” ECCC added.
Other parts of the province, like Rocky Mountain House, Edson, Fox Creek, and Kananaskis are forecast to experience heavy snow with total amounts of 10 to 20 cm expected. Snow will spread southward along the foothills today, with the heaviest amounts expected for communities near Hinton-Grande Cache and east toward Edson. For areas further south including Nordegg and Kananaskis, the heaviest snow will occur Sunday night and into Monday.
Snowfall totals are expected to be highly variable due to local terrain, and the snow will come to an end by Monday morning.
For major cities in Alberta like Edmonton and Calgary, YEG is forecast to see rain changing to periods of light snow this morning with snowfall amounts of two cm, and a further five to 10 centimetres of snow tonight. YYC could see snowfall amounts of two to four cm tonight.