Waves of snow on the way in Alberta for a gross May long weekend forecast

A powerful storm is on the way for parts of Alberta, bringing with it up to 20 centimetres of snow and strong wind gusts heading into the May long weekend.

A special weather statement is in effect for wide swaths of Alberta, including Edmonton, Red Deer, Lloydminster, and Medicine Hat, calling for strong, potentially damaging winds in Alberta on Thursday.

Looking at the Environment and Climate Change Canada significant weather outlook, strong, potentially damaging winds will develop early tomorrow morning, with gusts of 80 to 100 km/h expected through parts of central and southern Alberta before winds die down later tomorrow evening.

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“Damage to roofs, fences, branches or soft shelters is likely. Prepare for some disruptions to transportation, services, and utilities. Driving conditions will likely be very difficult. High-sided vehicles could be overturned by the wind. Secure loose objects. If outside, protect yourself from flying or falling debris,” the statement added.

You can view all ECCC watches, warnings, and special weather statements online.

In addition to the severe winds, the low will bring some rainfall through the day on Thursday. Upwards of 30 mm is possible in some areas by Friday morning.

Daily Hive spoke to Terri Lang, a meteorologist with ECCC, regarding what is behind the powerful storm making its presence known in Alberta.

Lang says what is on its way for the province tomorrow is what meteorologists call a vigorous low-pressure centre coming off the Pacific, bringing more of a punch with it compared to a Montana low or a system coming from the Yukon.

“It’s probably a leftover tropical storm at one point in time. But it just has a bit more energy to it. There’s a lot of heat ahead of that, and that sort of goes into building a deeper low-pressure system. And it is spring, still lots of cold air lurking to the north. So when you kind of have those, that combination of the really warm air and that cold air, it’s a good recipe for these deeper low-pressure systems,” Lang said.

The system will be forming throughout the day today, with rain moving in and probably some thunderstorms off the Rockies as well.

Waves of snow are also forecast to lash parts of the province, with northern Alberta, including areas like Peace River, Cold Lake, and Fort McMurray, at risk of seeing 10 to 15 centimetres on Friday, May 15.

Lang added that the risk of seeing snow in Edmonton is present; however, it will likely be very wet, chunky snow. Calgary has a much lower chance of seeing snow with the upcoming weather system, but knowing this time of year, it’s always a risk.

“It’s the long weekend for Canadians, especially people on the Prairies; it’s always a bit of a crap shoot. It’s going to be cold, rainy, snowy. No, we’re not going to be sitting around campfires making s’mores type of thing, like it’s, it’s going to be not a great long weekend.”

The risk of snow moves deeper into the May long weekend in Alberta on Saturday, May 16, with most of the Rockies under the gun to potentially see 10 to 20 centimetres of snow.

If you are heading out to the national parks in the mountains this weekend, Lang added to make sure that your car is equipped for winter conditions, and to pack very warm clothing, because it is not going to be a warm weekend.

If you are hoping to head out and enjoy the long weekend, Lang added that there is a small break in it with a bit of a weak ridge of high pressure moving in, and that tends to bring sort of calmer, calmer weather.

It won’t bring with it particularly warm temperatures, but come Monday, May 18, it will likely at least not be snowing in parts of Alberta, and there will be no huge winds.

Looking at the seven-day forecast for Edmonton and Calgary, it’s a pretty gross one with plenty of rain, cooler temperatures, and cloud cover on tap. Areas of the province seeing dry conditions will be pleased to see the precipitation, so there’s good news on that side of things.

Edmonton forecast

According to ECCC, the average high for Edmonton around this time of year is 18°C, while the average low is 6°C.

Calgary forecast

According to ECCC, the average high for Calgary around this time of year is 16°C, while the average low is 3°C.