It seems like Mother Nature is kicking off the shortest month of the year with some heavy-duty snow.
According to The Weather Network’s week-long forecast, “another big storm affecting tens of millions across Ontario and Quebec” is in the cards.
Meteorologist Nadine Powell says the weather agency “guarantees” the likeliness of a big swatch of snowfall in Quebec this week.
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The agency says the flip-flopping winter weather pattern is coming up through a front from the US and is about to create some tumultuous weather over Quebec before moving to Atlantic Canada. The Weather Network says the pattern is a result of an “atmospheric battleground as arctic air pressing in from the north meets a plume of milder and more moisture-laden air from the Gulf of Mexico.”
The agency says the forecast is calling for “wintry impacts” that will be “far-reaching” and could last for days.
“While parts of the US will see the concern for widespread ice, the most likely scenario for Canadians is long-duration snowfall, along an axis including Windsor, Toronto, Montreal, and parts of Atlantic Canada,” says Michael Carter, a meteorologist at The Weather Network.
While the exact details of snow totals and impacts will continue to be refined as the system approaches, the calmer and milder weather on Monday and Tuesday will provide a good opportunity for storm preparations, including any previous snow removal, says The Weather Network.
“Streets, sidewalks, cars, and roofs that can be cleared should be ahead of this week’s additional accumulations,” says the report.
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Snow will stack on top of areas that are still grappling from the snowfall impacts from the January 17 storm that also struck Ontario and Quebec.
“The existing snow would make additional snow removal difficult,” continues The Weather Agency. “Any rain could lead to flooding with clogged storm drains, and then exacerbate the risk of a flash freeze. Icy precipitation would further solidify what’s already on the ground. It would be a mess on top of a mess.”
As of now, Wednesday is expected to bring a little under five centimetres of snow to Montreal followed by up to 20 centimetres on Thursday and less than one on Friday.
The Weather Network
Since this round of snowfall won’t be as fast-moving as the storm from January 17, this pattern has the potential for being both “widespread and longer duration, likely impacting multiple commute times from Wednesday through to Friday,” concluded the weather agency.
Another blast of Arctic air will press over Quebec later in the week, with temperatures steadily falling during the storm and frigid weather likely for Friday and Saturday.