White Christmas guaranteed for Ottawa, Environment Canada says

Saturday 6 p.m. weather update Here is your 6 p.m. weather update for Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022.

Ottawa residents dreaming of a white Christmas will have their dreams come true on Christmas Day.

The 33.2 cm of snow that blanketed Ottawa Friday night and Saturday morning, along with the cold temperatures in the forecast over the next week, will guarantee a white Christmas on Dec. 25, Environment Canada says.

"The white Christmas is here to stay, no question," warning preparedness meteorologist Peter Kimbell said Friday.

A "white Christmas" is defined as having at least 2 cm of snow on the ground on Christmas morning.

Based on historical data, Environment Canada says there is a 79 per cent chance of a white Christmas in Ottawa.  The statistics are based on snowfall records from 1955 to 2021.

This will be the second straight white Christmas for the capital. Ottawa had 7 cm of snow on the ground on Dec. 25, 2021. It was a green Christmas in Ottawa in both 2019 and 2020.

Kimbell says the long-range forecast shows Ottawa may see another significant snowstorm next Friday, just two days before Christmas.

"The long-range models are forecasting a storm, possible towards the end of next week," Kimbell told Newstalk 580 CFRA on Friday. "What that will mean, no way to know."