Blast of winter just around corner

(Updated)

There’s no denying today was a beautiful day.

Lots of sunshine and warm temperatures – both, a very welcome change from the long, cold, stormy winter. But that brief break is almost over. According to the forecast a winter storm is coming tomorrow. Niagara Region is expected to get the worst of it, and Hamilton is under a blowing snow warning.

Environment Canada has issued a storm warning for Niagara, as well as the Dunnville, Haldimand, Simcoe and Norfolk areas.

The plows have been inspected, the brine stations filled, the barns loaded with salt.

Niagara Region is ready for this latest blast of winter.

“I think the morning commute is really going to be dicey. Because we’re going to see freezing rain to heavy snow.”

Predictions are more than 25 centimetres of snow will fall and blown around by strong winds. They say the hardest hit areas this time will be in the northern half of niagara region.

The problem is, they can’t really brine the roads well ahead of this storm because it’s going to rain first.

The positive news here is that it’s March Break. The school buses are off the roads and parents don’t have to worry about their kids travelling.

But the plow and salt operators will be out starting tonight. Since January they’ve poured 12,000 tonnes of salt on Niagara Region roads. That’s 50 per cent more salt than they use in an average winter.

The road crews work 12 hour shifts. And between the snow and the ice and the potholes they haven’t stopped.

“One day you’re plowing. The next day filling potholes. It’s really taking its toll.”

Even though Niagara region has used 12,000 tons of salt so far, it’s not worried about running out because it anticipated a really bad winter this year and cut a deal with their salt supplier to always have enough salt on hand.

Environment Canada has also issued a special weather statement covering most of Southern Ontario, including Brantford, Halton, Guelph, Mississauga and Toronto. It sounds like a perfect recipe for a messy morning commute.

We could get anywhere between 5 and 15 centimetres in these areas, and strong winds are expected to blow all that snow around – making it very difficult for drivers to see.

The city of Hamilton is already preparing to keep roads clear as well. This winter has proven to be a tough one for the city which has already exceeded its planned snow clearing budget. But there’s support from a reserve account, and despite a salt shortage earlier this year — the city’s Mike Christian says they’re comfortable with the current supply.

“Right now we’re at the max level that we’re going to get from our suppliers. Obviously if we needed more we would be searching around to find some more but at this point right now we’re at a comfortable level with the salt conservation strategy that we’ve implemented. We feel we’re pretty good to go right now.”

Crews will be monitoring the weather closely over the coming hours. In addition to the snow falling, the temperature is also going to fall about 16 degrees celsius overnight. It’s expected to hit around minus 7 tomorrow in some areas. That’s a big change from today’s high.

Be sure and watch First Edition and Morning Live tomorrow as we’ll be in StormWatch mode.