Highly impactful freezing rain to glaze northern Ontario as travels begin
Consider avoiding or postponing your travels over the next few days if you're in northwestern Ontario as hours of freezing rain are likely to highly impact the region's major highways.
Winter in northern Ontario has been unusually snow free this year, leaving residents scratching their heads as by now they're hardened from battling the snow for weeks on end.
Now as the holiday season come to its climax, folks in northern Ontario are facing a new December challenge -- freezing rain.
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Monday through Wednesday
A Texas low is losing momentum in the Midwest United States, and it’ll still be south of a chilly high-pressure system across northern Ontario, creating the perfect holiday recipe for a significant wintry-mix.
The greatest threat with this system will likely be the freezing rain, which could last for hours across several northern Ontario highways and communities.
Travel on Christmas Day will remain fairly good, with only a cold front passing through the area and bringing scattered precipitation.
It's not until waves of moisture begin to move in by Monday evening and overnight that conditions will begin to get messy and as a sharp temperature boundary develops with much cooler air north.
Temperatures in Armstrong are likely to dip below -10 degrees Celsius while temperatures in Thunder Bay remain near the freezing point.
A tricky forecast is developing for Thunder Bay as temperatures hover at or just above the freezing mark. Just north of the city, up to 10 mm of freezing rain is possible.
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Dangerous highways
Travel conditions will deteriorate throughout Boxing Day along Highways 17 and 11, where a persistent wintry-mix will sit and create dangerous driving conditions.
While the system will primarily be impacting roadways across northwestern Ontario, its impacts do extend east along the highways towards Kapuskasing, Wawa, and Timmins.
Consider avoiding or postponing any travelling on these highways if at all possible during this time. If you must travel, make sure to have a safety kit in your vehicle with you, drive according to conditions, and let a friend or loved one know where you are heading. It may also be a good idea to utilize four-wheel drive if your vehicle is capable.
In addition to roadway impacts, gusty winds in combination with the icy conditions could result in localized power outages.
Keep checking back with The Weather Network for more forecast information and updates on your weather in northern Ontario.
