2015 deep freeze: Heavy snow, lots of ice as winter sets in across Canada

A man skis across the Bill Thorpe Walking Bridge in Fredericton, N.B. in this file photo from Thursday, December 18, 2014. (Darren Calabrese / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Winter is hitting Canada with its full force in the first weekend of 2015, as a series of winter storms usher in miserable weather conditions for most parts of the country.

By the end of the weekend, winter storms will have brought snow to the west coast, ice out east and a bit of both for Quebec and Ontario. A blast of Arctic air is expected to plunge the Prairie provinces into a deep freeze.

Environment Canada issued a long series of weather warnings, weather watches and special weather statements for much of Canada on Friday, and many of those remained in effect Saturday.

Ontario

In Southern Ontario, wildly fluctuating temperatures brought snow, rain and freezing rain throughout the day Saturday. Police in the Greater Toronto Area reported hundreds of collisions due to bad weather.

Pearson International Airport warned travellers to expect weather-related delays and cancellations.

A few centimetres of snow Saturday evening should be washed away by heavy rainfall and above-freezing temperatures Sunday morning. But Environment Canada says the warmth will be short-lived, as colder temperatures will usher in freezing rain, flurries and bitter winds later in the day.

Environment Canada says the "significant" winter storm system will track through southwestern Ontario, up to the northeastern part of the province by Sunday.

Parts of northern Ontario are under an extreme cold alert. They could also face heavy snowfall and a "messy mixture" of rain, snow and freezing rain, the weather agency says.

Environment Canada meteorologist Geoff Coulson described the storm as a collision of two weather systems -- one from the south and one from the northwest.

“That system that came up from the gulf (and) was packing lots of warm air, lots of moisture with it: falling as snow in some parts of Ontario, freezing rain in others, and now turning over to rain in southwestern Ontario,” Coulson told CTV’s News Channel Saturday.

Though temperatures are set to rise overnight in southern Ontario, Environment Canada’s Dave Phillips warned it won’t last long.

“It’s going to last a very short time, that warm air, but it’s going to be dramatic, and that’s what’s going to cause the messy precipitation,” Phillips said.

British Columbia

Though the coast of British Columbia was only experiencing light rain as of Saturday afternoon, most of the region remains under a winter storm warning as forecasters expect heavy snowfall to hit the area Sunday morning. About 25 centimetres of snow is expected for affected regions, with snow turning to freezing rain by Monday evening.

"Consider postponing non-essential travel until conditions improve," says the Environment Canada weather statement. "Prepare for quickly changing and deteriorating travel conditions."

Eastern parts of B.C. are under a winter storm watch for similar conditions.

Prairies

Most parts of Saskatchewan and Manitoba remain under an extreme cold warning. Temperatures are expected to drop into the minus-30 range, with possible windchill values in the low minus 40s expected for Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Regina and surrounding areas.

Environment Canada has lifted Friday's weather warnings for Alberta, but the province is still facing a bitterly cold blast of Arctic wind that could drag windchill temperatures down into the range of minus 40 degrees Celsius.

Quebec

Quebecers are being told to brace for heavy snow followed by ice pellets and freezing rain in several parts of the province this weekend. Environment Canada is expecting 15 to 25 centimetres of snow for much of the province, along with between five and 15 millimetres of ice build-up. Strong easterly winds and blowing snow are also expected with the storm.

Eastern Canada

Coulson predicted the Maritimes is set to receive a mess of ice, snow and rain.

“The overall weather story by the time we get through the first full week of 2015 will be cold across much of Central and Eastern Canada,” he said.

Newfoundland can expect about 10 centimetres of snow and 10 millimetres of rain, with ice pellets mixed in. Heavy southeasterly winds are also expected, with gusts reaching between 60 and 80 kilometres per hour. Labrador City is under an extreme cold warning. Environment Canada has also issued a wreckhouse wind warning for Channel-Port aux Basques and vicinity for possible gusts of up to 120 kilometres per hour on Sunday evening.

"Be prepared to adjust your driving with changing road conditions due to high winds," Environment Canada says in a statement for the region. "Wreckhouse Wind Warnings are issued when there is a significant risk of damaging winds."

Freezing rain and ice pellets are expected throughout the weekend for parts of New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, including Fredericton and Charlottetown.

Nova Scotia is under a special weather statement as Environment Canada waits to see how much snow these tumultuous weather patterns could produce there later next week.

And as the Maritimes brace themselves for the full effect of the storm, utilities like NB Power in New Brunswick are busy preparing for the worst.

“Trucks are stocked, equipment is handy. Obviously it’s a bit of a wait-and-see approach right now,” said spokesperson Marie Andree Bolduc. “But we’re monitoring the situation, and as need be, crews will be on the ground.”