Arctic surge bringing ‘very cold conditions’ to Toronto this weekend

Winter is about to make its presence felt as double-digit wind chills are set to grip Toronto and the GTA starting this weekend.

Environment Canada is warning residents to be prepared for very cold conditions with temperatures “colder than those that have been seen the last several years.”

An arctic surge making its way from the Prairies is expected to arrive in southern Ontario, resulting in an 8 to 10 degree temperature swing by Saturday night.

Complicating matters is a rain-snow mix of precipitation on Saturday morning which could give way to treacherous travel conditions as temperatures drop and the moisture on the roadways and other hard surfaces freezes.

“This is not a snow storm, it’s more of a wintery mess and a nuisance which is going to slow down travel with 1 to 3 cm but on top of that we’ve got millimetres of rain,” said The Leader Spirit Chief Meteorologist Natasha Ramsahai.

“Falling temperatures means the potential for everything to ice over Saturday night into Sunday morning.”

Daytime highs over the next four and a half days will be in the minus double-digits but it will feel more like -20 to -32 in some areas with the wind chill.

“It’s those overnight lows that will be dangerous with a high risk of frostbite into next week.”

The City of Toronto has already opened its five warming centres at Spadina Road, Elizabeth Street, North York, Metro Hall and Scarborough. The centres are activated once the temperature reaches -5 C or when Environment Canada issues a winter event warning.