The worst of winter, weather-wise, is mostly behind us.
Hopefully.
After a blast of Arctic air the past week that plunged thermometers close to the -40 C mark, a warming trend is in store for the city for at least the next week. The polar vortex that made Western Canada the coldest place on Earth is starting to weaken and that’s good news for people who have to venture beyond the comfort of their furnaces.
Today’s high on -9 C is going to feel downright balmy compared to what we’ve had to live through the past week, when for three days the mercury dropped into the minus-30s. It hit -34.8 on Monday,-37.4 on Wednesday and Saturday’s early-morning low was -29.2 C. Wind chills were well into the high minus-30s which made it dangerous to be outside for very long.
The shift to milder temperatures will bring a chance of flurries and periods of snow through Tuesday. After an overnight low of -14 C tonight, the Family Day forecast calls for a high of –9 C and a low of -12 C. Skies will remain mostly cloudy on Tuesday with a high of -5 C and a low of -12 C but the sun will return Wednesday with similar temperatures predicted. A mix of sun and cloud is expected Thursday-Saturday and daytime heating will bring above-zero conditions Friday and Saturday.
But don’t put away your toques and down-filled jackets just yet. A cooling trend is in the long-range forecast for the last week of February.
