Saskatchewan is set to receive its first taste of winter in the next 24 hours, but Humboldt and area, along with most of northeast Saskatchewan, should miss the brunt of it.
Areas to the south may not be so lucky, says Shannon Moodie, meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.
“We have a low-pressure system that developed in Alberta, and it’s going to be tracking across Saskatchewan today. With that, there is a chance of some flurries and a chance of some freezing rain as well. As temperatures warm up about zero today, there will be some mixed precipitation – some flurries mixed with showers.”
This evening, as temperatures cool to nighttime values, communities in southern Saskatchewan will see a couple centimetres of snow accumulation, Moodie predicts. The system will be accompanied by gusty winds which could result in reduced visibility. The lighter snowfall amounts in the Humboldt region should lessen the impact. Areas near Watrous and south will likely see greater accumulations.
“Regina will get a couple of centimetres, so will Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Kindersley and Outlook. The hardest hit area will be the Cypress Hills. They are at a higher elevation, so we are expecting some heavier snowfall for that region.”
The track of the storm sets up a similar pattern to last winter where larger accumulations and more intense storms tended to track south of the Yellowhead. It’s likely wishful thinking for the rest of the winter to be as such, but for this fast-moving low, that will be the case.
The system is expected to track east and out of the region overnight and into tomorrow morning.