THUNDER BAY – Weather conditions will impact travel across Northern Ontario today. Environment Canada has issued weather warnings for the far north and for the north shore of Lake Superior.
The weather will likely impact road conditions along Highway 11-17 from Nipigon to Sault Ste Marie. Environment Canada reports, “A sharp Arctic cold front blasting east across Northern Ontario has flurries associated with it as it moves through. There is the potential for a strong, but brief snow squall to develop near the front as it moves through. The front will affect areas north of Lake Superior this morning, then move across Northeastern Ontario this afternoon, reaching the Nickel Belt and Nipissing regions this evening. The snow squall associated with the cold front may dump 2 to 4 cm of snow in an hour or less as it moves through, along with sudden very low visibilities of a couple hundred metres or less. Blowing snow from strong and gusty winds in the snow squall may also result in sudden very low to almost nil visibility.
Snow squalls may be a bit longer lived and more intense in the regions near Lake Superior extending from near Pukaskwa through Wawa to Sault Ste Marie with up to 10 cm of snow possible.
Further North the issue is extreme cold weather.
For Fort Severn, Big Trout Lake, Attawapiskat, Kashechewan, Fort Hope, Lansdowne House, Ogoki, and Webequie Environment Canada has issued wind chill warnings. Wind chills colder minus 45 or colder this morning are expected over northern sections and minus 45 to minus 55 tonight over all regions.
Bitterly cold Arctic air will follow the passage of a low pressure system today. Northwest winds of 20 to 30 km/h will combine with temperatures in the minus thirties this morning to create wind chills in the minus 45 to minus 50 range especially for areas near Hudson Bay to as far south as Big Trout Lake and Webequie.
These cold wind chills are expected to spread into remaining portions of Far Northern Ontario tonight and Thursday morning with wind chills reaching minus 45 over southern locales and near minus 55 over northern locales.
