Achi news desk-
A snowfall warning issued for the slopes on Wednesday was expanded to include the City of Calgary and areas to the north.
According to Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) totals of 15 to 30 centimeters are possible over this multi-day snow event.
A complex low system located over the Pacific Northwest will drive steady moisture into Alberta through the southern border in waves – with quite high precipitation rates at times.
Caption: Snowfall warning (white) from ECCC, including Calgary. (Thursday, April 4, 2024)
As expected the precipitation initially started as rain on Wednesday before transitioning to a rain-snow mix and finally heavy, wet snow around 4 am on Thursday.
Warmer surface temperatures on roads and pavements allowed most of that initial snow to melt on contact, but vehicles parked outside overnight had a build-up of wet snow and wet
A stronger surface northerly wind complicated matters by amplifying visibility issues, and by 8 a.m. highways were beginning to show some slushy accumulations, prompting Alberta 511 to evaluate highways west and south of Calgary as with winter driving conditions.
With daytime highs expected to remain around freezing for most of the day Thursday and Friday and northerly winds continuing to be a factor for Thursday, roads and trunk roads are likely to be untreated and fragile surfaces such as corners, intersections, ramps and bridge decks become slick.
With daytime highs expected to remain around freezing for most of the day Thursday and Friday and northerly winds continuing to be a factor for Thursday, roads and trunk roads are likely to be untreated and fragile surfaces such as corners, intersections, ramps and bridge decks become slick.
Surfaces such as wooden decks and patios and grass will also become slicker throughout the day.
Areas in the southern foothills will likely get the highest accumulations due to an upwelling element – ​​as counterclockwise rotation around the lows pushes moisture back up against the Rockies. And in some communities there will be short periods of rain mixed with snow.
There will be very little sunshine until at least Sunday, and daytime highs are expected to remain below seasonable until then.
Areas in the southern foothills will likely get the highest accumulations due to an upwelling element – ​​as counterclockwise rotation around the lows pushes moisture back up against the Rockies.
In some communities there will be short periods of rain mixed with snow.
For the latest weather advice from ECCC click here. Alberta’s 511 highway conditions can be found here, and click here for the latest on BC roads
There will be very little sunshine until at least Sunday, and daytime highs are expected to remain below seasonable until then.
