Another ice storm followed by ‘significant rainfall’ is expected to bring slippery roads and sidewalks to the nation’s capital this week.
Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement for Ottawa and eastern Ontario with 2 to 5 mm of ice accretion forecasted starting on Wednesday morning through the evening.
As temperatures rise above the freezing mark, the national weather forecaster says freezing rain will transition to rain through eastern Ontario Wednesday night.
Total rainfall amounts between 20 and 40 mm and possible thunderstorms are expected. Freezing rain may persist into Thursday morning for areas along the Ottawa River.
“Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become icy, slippery and hazardous. Ice build-up may cause tree branches to break,” Environment Canada says.
Localized flooding in low-lying areas is possible.
“Precipitation may begin as snow and ice pellets, especially over central and eastern Ontario. Southeasterly winds gusting to near 50 km/h on Wednesday may exacerbate any tree damage,” the forecaster says.
A snow and ice storm over the weekend brought 25 cm of snow on Friday night and Saturday, followed by more than 16 hours of freezing rain and ice pellets on Sunday.
Thousands of Hydro One customers in Ontario remain without power, including in parts of eastern Ontario.
Ottawa weather
Heavy fog hovered over downtown Ottawa Monday.
CTV’s Westin camera showed fog lingering over Parliament Hill and the Ottawa River. At 11 a.m., the visibility was reduced to zero in downtown due to the fog.
The temperature jumped from 3 C at 9 a.m. to 8 C at 11 a.m. It reached a high of 9 C at 3 p.m.
Temperatures are expected to drop to -4 C tonight and -11 C on Tuesday.
Environment Canada’s forecast calls for showers to end in the morning then cloudy with a 40 per cent chance of rain this evening.
The record for warmest March 31 is 23 C, set back in 2006.
Tuesday will be mainly cloudy before clearing near noon. High 2 C.
Wednesday will be cloudy. High -1 C.
The outlook for Thursday calls for cloudy with a 60 per cent chance of showers. High 17 C.
Friday will be sunny. High 11 C.
The normal temperatures for this time of year are a high of 8 C and a low of -3 C.
Ottawa River
All eyes are on waterways in the region following the weekend of heavy rain and snow.
The Ottawa River Regulation Planning Board says water levels and flows continue to decrease on the main stem of the Ottawa River. Officials warn there is still a chance of minor flowing in low-lying areas.
“From Chats Lake down to the Montreal area, water levels and flows are expected to increase gradually over the next few days, with possible rapid increase in some locations depending on the speed of snowmelt and amount of rainfall received,” the planning board said. “Later on, levels and flows should stabilize and may start to decline depending on temperatures over the coming week.”
