After close to two weeks of above-average temperatures across Southern Manitoba, punctuated by another beautiful December day Thursday, Old Man Winter will make a comeback Friday and spoil our Summer Vacation.
“It’s quite likely more daytime high records will have been set on Thursday, with temperatures again reaching 8 to nearly 10 degrees in areas near the U.S. border,” explained CMOS Accredited Weathercaster Chris Sumner. “That would be the second consecutive day where highs were nearly 15 degrees above average for this time of year.”
-7/-8 degrees Celsius is the normal high for the first week of December.
“Friday will be a harsh return to reality as a fast-moving low-pressure system tracking along the U.S. border brings rain, snow and very strong winds,” he noted. “After the extended Fall we’ve had of late, this will feel like quite the rude awakening, and will more than likely lead to challenging driving conditions by late afternoon Friday, continuing into the evening hours and overnight into Saturday morning.”
That system is already affecting the Brandon, Dauphin, Neepawa, Deloraine areas as of 6 a.m.
Environment Canada has issued a Snowfall Warning for all of Western Manitoba, as far east as the Pilot Mound and Manitou areas as well as Brandon, Dauphin and Swan River. 10 to 15cm is expected in those areas between now and Saturday morning, with the remainder of Southern Manitoba in line for up to 10cms.
"Snowfall accumulations will vary as temperatures are near the freezing mark and there may be some melting," noted the forecaster in the Warning. "Locally higher snowfall amounts are expected over the Manitoba Parklands."
For the latest forecast details, click here.
According to Sumner, rain started in Western Manitoba Thursday night, before changing to light snow overnight. The eastern part of the Central Plains, Red River Valley and Southeastern Manitoba will remain in the warm portion of the system into Friday afternoon, before the rainfall changes over to snow by mid to late afternoon. Rain is already moving into the Portage area early today.
“During the day Friday, western parts of the province will see snow throughout,” he said. “Further east, the precipitation begins as rain, changing to snow, with the timing of that changeover depending on when the cold air being pulled into the backside of the system arrives into our region. I fully expect by the supper hour Friday, we will be well into the snowy part of the system.”
For the latest road report and cancellations, click here.
“The strong northwesterly winds developing Friday may end up being the bigger story, as they combine with that falling snow leading to reduced visibility in blowing and drifting snow,” he added. “Gusts up to 70km/h are expected during the day in the western part of the province, with those gusts reaching the Red River Valley and Southeastern regions by early evening. Because we’re expecting the snowfall to continue during that windy ramp up, visibility will more than likely be a concern Friday night.”
The system will move eastward out of the region on Saturday, with seasonal temperatures returning for the weekend and into early next week.
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