Toronto is bracing for the arrival of yet another winter storm, this one coming just in time for the weekend
Environment Canada initially issued a winter storm watch for a wide swath of southern Ontario, including the GTA, ahead of the arrival of a Texas low that it says will bring “heavy snow” and “strong easterly winds” to the region
However, the advisory was upgraded to a winter storm warning on Thursday afternoon
The weather agency says that snow will begin falling Friday evening and continue into early Saturday morning with possible snowfall rates up to four centimetres per hour
By the time the system passes Environment Canada expects 15 to 20 centimetres of snowfall accumulation in Toronto, though it says that there is still “some uncertainty” about where the heaviest snow will occur
“Snow will begin Friday evening and quickly become heavy at times. Heavy snow in combination with strong easterly winds will create significantly reduced visibility and hazardous travel conditions,” the advisory issued on Thursday morning states. “Rapidly accumulating snow could make travel difficult over some locations. Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become icy and slippery”
The GTA got hit with a mix of snow and freezing rain on Monday, resulting in a hazardous evening commute followed by some school bus cancellations the following morning
That system came just days after another winter storm on Feb. 22, which saw approximately 15 centimetres of snow fall on the GTA
CP24 Meteorologist Bill Coulter says that the latest system “could make for a really messy commute” on Friday evening but should taper off by Saturday morning
He said right now it looks like the temperature should be around the freezing mark as the system arrives, creating some uncertainty when it comes to just how much snow will accumulate
“We could see some mixing which would limit the accumulation but if it stays as all snow and the track doesn’t change this could definitely be 10 to 20 centimetres of snow,” he said
A daytime high of 3 C is expected through the day on Saturday, with a high of 4 C forecast for Sunday
Chris Fox, CP24.com Managing Digital Producer
