Snow again? Wintry spring weather won't let up for eastern Newfoundland

A resident clears snow from an overnight spring snowstorm in Paradise, N.L., on Saturday, April 25, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Daly

ST. JOHN’S -- A chorus of groans and resigned laughter could be heard on a downtown residential street in Newfoundland and Labrador’s capital city Saturday morning as people began shovelling out their cars after a dump of late-April snow.

Shovelling has been a common activity since December, as eastern Newfoundland weathered a record-breaking winter. Though the first day of spring was technically March 20, the snow hasn’t let up.

Weather monitors reported snowfalls totalling 15 and 20 centimetres Saturday morning in Torbay and Paradise, two communities on the outskirts of St. John’s. About 15 centimetres was recorded at the St. John’s International Airport, according to Environment Canada.

Des Morgan woke up Saturday morning to see a car stuck in the wet snow on his cul-de-sac in the east end of the capital. He was soon outside with his snowblower, clearing his own driveway and those for seven or eight of his neighbours, just as he has done after every snowfall since the temperatures dropped last year.

“Some of them are single women, some of them are older. I just do it because I can help, basically,” Morgan said in an interview.

The snowy season has been “a lot,” he added, “especially bad” compared to the past few years.

In Mount Pearl, a city about 10 kilometres southwest of downtown St. John’s, the frequent storms have been tough on business at Mamacita’s Mexican Kitchen and Latin Market.

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Repeated snow days and cancellations have been particularly hard on Mamacita’s catering services and its recently opened shop at the St. John’s airport, said co-owner Claudia Fimbres.

Flight cancellations have forced her to close her airport operation early or not open it at all 40 times since December, she said in an interview. And trying to keep on top of snow clearing at her Mount Pearl storefront quickly became expensive.

“We tried to handle it ourselves, with regular household equipment. But it gets to a point where it’s like, where do you put the snow?” Fimbres said. “To remove it, it’s more expensive.”

It cost about $400 for someone to take away one metric tonne of snow, she said. That weight was surpassed easily by storms in February, which dumped more than 70 cm in some areas around St. John’s.

Snowfall at the St. John’s airport totalled more than 170 cm in February, setting a new record for that month.

Many in the St. John’s area took to social media on Saturday to vent their frustrations with the weather. One woman asked on Facebook if she should just give up and put up a Christmas tree.

Meteorologist Eddie Sheerr posted a video showing a white landscape behind him in Torbay, N.L. He paused to capture the sound of hard-working snowblowers.

“The sound of snowblowers is just beautiful, way better than the sound of birds chirping in a blue sky,” he cracked. “Oh, it’s also raining now!”

Environment Canada said a mix of rain and flurries was on tap for St. John’s overnight Saturday and Sunday, but temperatures should warm up beginning Monday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 25, 2026.

Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press