Peterborough Blogs
Snowfall Warning Issued For Peterborough And Kawartha Area
/Environment Canada has issued a snowfall warning for most of the greater Kawarthas region for Thursday afternoon into Friday morning.
File Photo.
The snowfall warning is in effect for Peterborough County, Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland County, and Hastings County.
Precipitation will begin as rain Wednesday evening, with freezing rain and ice pellets possible Thursday morning and afternoon.
Snow will begin Thursday afternoon and continue through Friday morning. Total snowfall accumulations of 10 to 20 cm are possible. As the track of the low pressure system remains uncertain, precipitation timing and amounts may change.
Travel is expected to become difficult as road conditions are unpredictable.
Flood Watch Issued For Peterborough Area In Anticipation Of Heavy Rainfall
/A flood watch has been issued by Otonabee Conservation for all waterbodies and watercourses in the Peterborough region.
Photo courtesy of The City of Peterborough.
Areas that may be affected include Municipalities of Selwyn, Douro-Dummer, Asphodel-Norwood, Otonabee-South Monaghan, Cavan Monaghan, City of Kawartha Lakes, City of Peterborough and Trent Hills.
A low-pressure trough will bring soaring air temperatures reaching 6-7 degrees Celsius. Air temperatures will continue in this range over the next 36 to 48 hours ahead of an arriving cold front.
Also, ahead of the cold front is a total of 15 to 25 millimeters of rain. Depending on how the system tracks, there is a possibly that as much as 50 millimeters of rain will fall. As the cold front pushes into the region, there will be strong winds, a drop in air temperatures, and we will receive snowfall of 15 to 20 centimeters. This mix of vastly varying air temperatures, strong winds, differing forms of precipitation will make for messy conditions.
Uncertainty in total rainfall amounts translates to a possibility of flooding.
Current conditions include frozen ground covered by a snowpack that is 25-30 centimeters deep with a water content of 85-90 millimeters. Modelling of the warm air temperature/rain event shows 35-40 millimeters of rainfall/snowmelt will be available for run-off, possibly as much as 65 millimeters. However, the snowpack will absorb 5 to 10 per cent, helping to lessen the amount of rainfall/snowmelt to be released into area rivers, streams, creeks, and wetlands. Ice cover break-up is not expected.
Water levels can be monitored on-line at:
1) Trent-Severn Waterway’s Water Management InfoNet
2) Water Survey of Canada Real-Time Hydrometric Data
3) Otonabee Region Conservation Authority website
This flood watch will expire on Feb. 21.
Extreme Cold Weather Warning In Effect For Peterborough Area
/Wind chill values are expected to drop to -30°C for Peterborough and Kawartha Lakes Saturday and Sunday.
Environment Canada has issued an extreme cold warning for most the greater Kawarthas region for Saturday night into Sunday morning, and again for Sunday night into early Monday morning.
The extreme cold warning is in effect for Peterborough County, Kawartha Lakes, Haliburton County, and Hastings County.
Minimum low temperatures near -25°C with wind chill values near -30°C are expected Saturday night into Sunday morning for Peterborough County and Kawartha Lakes, with minimum low temperatures near -30°C and wind chill values near -35°C for Haliburton and Hastings counties.
Environment Canada suggest rescheduling outdoor events if possible.
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Wiarton Willie Predicts An Early Spring On Groundhog Day
/On Tuesday, Groundhog Day, Wiarton Willie decided that Ontario would see an early spring.
The character of Wiarton Willie has been present in South Bruce Peninsula for 65 years. Locals claim his prediction comes true every year.
Legend says that if the groundhog sees its shadow, it will be scared and return to its burrow. That means six more weeks of winter on the way.
If the groundhog stays outside it will be an early spring.
Groundhog Day is usually celebrated with a large crowd in Wiarton, though due to the pandemic this year the event was closed to the public.
While Willie decided it would be an early spring, Shubenacadie Sam, a groundhog from Nova Scotia, predicted the opposite.
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Special Weather Statement To Bring Up To 20cm Of Snow This Week
/Environment Canada has issued a Special Weather Statement for Ontario, stating that Wednesday and Thursday could bring between 10 - 20cm of snow.
Snow is estimated to begin at 12 a.m. on Wednesday and continue until early Friday morning.
Tuesday night is expected to see about 1cm of snow, Wednesday night will bring about 5cm and Thursday 5-10cm.
Tuesday temperatures will range from feeling like -4 to -18. It will warm up Wednesday, feeling like -1 and drop again on Thursday with a temperature of -11.
The last special weather statement in the area was on Jan. 17 and brought with it close to 50cm of snow in some areas around Peterborough County.
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Peterborough Public Health Issues Sixth Frostbite Alert of the Season
/Peterborough Public Health (PPH) has issued its sixth frostbite alert this season as wind chill values are forecast to drop below -27°C from 10:00 p.m. Friday and last at least until 10:00 a.m. on Saturday.
The first frostbite alert for Peterborough was issued on Jan. 7. Photo by David Tuan Bui.
Extreme cold events are a potentially significant health risk and everyone is encouraged to take precautions to stay safe. Extreme cold temperatures can particularly impact the health of vulnerable populations including infants, the elderly, people with circulatory problems and the marginally housed. There are various emergency shelters available overnight in the City of Peterborough.
In order to protect the health of people in Peterborough County and City and Curve Lake and Hiawatha First Nations, Peterborough Public Health advises local residents to take the following precautions:
Check face and extremities frequently for signs of frostbite. Exposed skin can freeze in as little as 10 to 30 minutes.
Consider re-scheduling outdoor recreational activities, especially during the evening. There is a serious risk of hypothermia and frostbite if outdoors for long periods.
Use caution when shovelling snow especially for those that have heart, respiratory (breathing) problems or other medical conditions. Snow shovelling is strenuous and can cause an onset of heart or respiratory problems.
Check on the elderly or people with disabilities living alone.
Always wear clothing appropriate for the weather. Synthetic and wool fabrics provide better insulation. Some synthetic fabrics are designed to keep perspiration away from your body which keeps you dry and further reduces your risk.
PPH has issued the following tips:
Dress in layers with a wind-resistant outer layer. You can remove layers if you get too warm (before you start sweating) or add a layer if you get cold.
Wear warm socks, gloves, a hat and a scarf in cold weather. Be sure to cover your nose to protect it.
If you get wet, change into dry clothing as soon as possible. You lose heat faster when you're wet.
Cold related illnesses include:
Hypothermia: Symptoms/signs include: shivering, exhaustion, confusion, fumbling/uncoordinated movements, memory loss, slurred speech, drowsiness.
Frostbite: Symptoms/signs include: white/greyish skin area, skin that feels unusually firm or waxy, or numbness. Increases in other health problems can also be seen especially for those with other chronic medical conditions such as heart conditions.
Further information about the health risks of extreme cold and Peterborough Public Health’s Extreme Cold Response Plan can be found here or by visiting www.peterboroughpublichealth.ca and searching for “extreme cold.”
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Flood Warning Issued In Peterborough Area
/Otonabee Conservation has issued a flood watch for Otonabee River, Jackson Creek and all other flowing watercourses in the Region
File Photo.
Municipalities of Selwyn, Douro-Dummer, Asphodel-Norwood, Otonabee-South Monaghan, Cavan Monaghan, City of Kawartha Lakes, City of Peterborough and Trent Hills, and ORCA’s other partners in flood emergency management are included in the flood watch.
The current extreme cold air temperatures can combine with a lack of ice cover and turbulent flows in area rivers, streams, and creeks to cause the generation of frazil ice which can lead to flooding. Extreme cold weather causing flooding has historically been observed in Jackson Creek and the Otonabee River but is possible anywhere that watercourses are uninsulated by ice cover and where flows are turbulent due to rapids or water falling over dams or waterfalls
Frazil ice – a kind of slush ice - can form when cold air temperatures and wind chill combine to cause surface water temperature to be super-cooled (i.e., cooled below the freezing point), but the super-cooled water is unable to form a solid cover of ice because of fast moving water. As frazil ice flows downstream it will eventually come to rest against obstructions (e.g., islands, bridge piers and abutments), in low velocity areas (bends and slope reductions) or in areas of channel constrictions. Where it comes to rest, it will accumulate.
Where frazil ice accumulates, it is likely to cause a restriction of water flow downstream, thereby resulting in a rise of water, and possibly flooding, behind the frazil ice jam.
Water levels can be monitored on-line at:
1) Trent-Severn Waterway’s Water Management InfoNet
2) Water Survey of Canada Real-Time Hydrometric Data
3) Otonabee Region Conservation Authority website
This Flood Watch will expire on Feb. 1.
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Snow Plow Crews Still Working Around The Clock In Response To Monday's Storm
/Snow clearing efforts continue and are progressing well following the significant snow storm in southern Ontario on Jan. 16-17, that dropped about 34 cm of snow on Peterborough.
Photo courtesy of The City of Peterborough.
City snow clearing crews have been working in shifts 24 hours a day since the night of Jan. 16. With the progress made on snow clearing, effective 7 p.m. on Thursday the City lifted the Significant Weather Event designation it put in place on Monday.
The majority of streets, sidewalks, and bus stops were clear by Thursday afternoon; crews continue to revisit some locations that require further clean-up.
“Thank you to residents for your patience and understanding as our community digs out of this big snowfall. A special thank you to everyone who helped a neighbour or community member after the storm. We are lucky to have exemplary Public Works crews that have been out there 24/7 to keep our community going,” Mayor Diane Therrien said. “Some other municipalities had to close facilities and services for several days due to this storm. While work is still happening, we’ve been able to minimize disruption while we either enjoy or curse the huge amount of snow.”
In addition to revisiting some locations of sidewalks and bus stops that need additional clean-up, the snow clearing work continued overnight on Thursday into Friday, with the focus on restoring roadway lane widths where snow banks have narrowed the roadways, removing snow on bridges to restore sidewalk widths, and continued maintenance on other locations such as dead-end streets and cul-de-sacs.
There are other locations, like the downtown, that require additional snow removal and work will continue until those locations are addressed.
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Extreme Cold Warning In Peterborough County Begins Thursday Morning
/Environment Canada issued an extreme cold warning for Peterborough County, Kawartha Lakes, northern Hastings County, and Haliburton County, beginning Thursday morning.
Photo by Angela O’Grady.
