Ottawa sees 6 cm of snow on the first day of spring

CTV’s Jackie Perez shares the full local 6 p.m. forecast for Friday, March 20, 2026.

Spring has sprung in Ottawa with a fresh blanket of snow on the ground.

Spring officially arrived at 10:46 a.m., as a snowstorm hit Ottawa and eastern Ontario. A special weather statement issued for Ottawa ended just after 3 p.m.

As of 2 p.m., six centimetres of snow was recorded at the Ottawa Airport, while five centimetres fell at the Gatineau Airport.

The forecast calls for periods of snow changing to cloudy with a 40 per cent chance of flurries this afternoon. High 0 C.

It will be cloudy tonight with a 40 per cent chance of flurries. Low -9 C.

Saturday will see a mix of sun and cloud. High 5 C.

Periods of snow or rain are expected on Sunday. High 2 C.

The outlook for Monday calls for cloudy with a 30 per cent chance of flurries. High 0 C.

Tuesday will see a mix of sun and cloud with a 40 per cent chance of flurries. High 1 C.

The normal temperatures for this time of year are a high of 4 C and a low of -5 C.

Snowy winter

Ottawa has surpassed 250 centimetres of snow so far this winter.

According to Environment Canada’s website, Ottawa has received 254 cm of snow since November 9.

A total of 32.5 cm of snow was recorded in November. 56.6 cm of snow in December, 81.6 cm of snow in January, 48.3 cm of snow in February and 31.4 cm of snow so far in March.

City of Ottawa deploys snowplow patrol

The City of Ottawa says its fleet of snowplows will be deployed during the storm.

“As the system moves into the region and accumulation begins, crews will be deployed to clear and treat sidewalks, priority roads, bus routes, the Transitway and the winter cycling network,” the city said on its website.

“Parks Maintenance will also be out clearing and treating emergency service stations, libraries and community centres as well as some City facility parking lots.”

• Hourly and 7-day forecast on our CTVNewsOttawa.ca weather hub