Heavy rain follows hours of ice heading into the weekend across Newfoundland
Rounds of stormy weather are taking aim at Newfoundland once again, making a mess of conditions heading into this last weekend of February.
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After 11 hours of freezing rain hit the St. John's area late Thursday night, the precipitation switched over to straight rain by Friday morning. Things will continue to improve throughout the day, but another wave of moisture pushes in for the weekend.
This time, western sections of the island will be on the receiving end of the heavy rainfall, with as much as 75+ mm possible in the hardest hit areas through Sunday. Localized flooding is a concern.
Saturday into Sunday:
This second push of moisture arrives early Saturday morning, with a quick burst of snow, and brief freezing rain expected across western Newfoundland. This could result in some icy conditions. Through the morning hours, the precipitation will change over to rain.
The rain will continue, heavy at times, through the afternoon and evening over southwestern areas of the island.
Rainfall warnings are in effect for the region, with the threat for 100 mm, locally, over higher terrain.
"Very significant runoff is expected due to the combined effect of rain and mild weather, which will lead to significant snow melting, even in mountainous areas," says Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) in the warning. "There will likely be accumulation of water and flooding in areas subject to runoff from melting snow."
A gradual shift in the moisture happens through the overnight on Saturday, with the rain spreading into the Avalon Peninsula by the pre-dawn hours on Sunday.
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Conditions are expected to dry out from west to east by noon Sunday, though with temperatures forecast to quickly drop behind the system.
Surfaces such as roads and sidewalks could become icy and slippery into Sunday.
Stay with The Weather Network for all the latest on your forecast across Newfoundland.
Thumbnail image courtesy: Beverly Quinlan - Birchy Bay, Newfoundland.
