Bad weather brewing: Alberta's deep freeze set to end, expect powerful weekend winter storm

A bitterly cold mass of Arctic air that has chilled Alberta for days will soon make its exit, but the dangerously cold system will not go quietly. 

The province will thaw out next week, but not before a powerful winter storm wallops Alberta just in time to throw a wrench into holiday travel plans.

Environment Canada says the icy system that has gripped Alberta since Sunday will be pushed out by another low pressure system that will bring blowing winds, heavy snowfall and freezing rain to the province.

"I have good news and bad news," said Environment Canada meteorologist Sara Hoffman in an interview Thursday.  

"It'll get a little bit warmer, but the bad news is there will be a little bit of winter weather that comes along with that." 

Hoffman said the storm is just coming into view on the weather office's radar systems and is not yet reflected in the longterm forecast. 

But bad weather is definitely brewing. 

"We want people to know, relief will come, but there will be snow, especially northern parts of the province," Hoffman said.  

"For something so cold and entrenched to move along to the east, it really takes a strong disturbance from the Pacific to kind of push it along." 

The winter storm is forecast to last about 12 hours in Alberta, from Saturday evening into Sunday morning, Hoffman said.

The low pressure system will form over the Edmonton region before moving southeast and hitting Saskatchewan on Sunday. 

Northern parts of Alberta, including Edmonton, can expect anywhere from five to 10 centimetres of snow. Some areas, especially the Grande Prairie region, will be hit with as much as 15 centimetres, Hoffman said. 

The sharp rise in temperatures will also bring chinook winds, along with periods of freezing rain to communities across southern Alberta. 

Hunker down

Driving conditions will be "particularly poor" on highways across the province, Hoffman said. She encouraged drivers travelling in Alberta and Saskatchewan to adjust their holiday travel plans to avoid the worst of it.

"Saturday evening into Sunday morning, we'll be dealing with the brunt of this weather in Alberta," she said.  "It's Sunday where Saskatchewan really starts to deal with it. 

"If you're just sitting at home and you're going to hunker down and you're not really going out anywhere, you won't be too impacted by this system. But if you are on the highways, it will be impactful to you."

The storm will be cold comfort to shivering Albertans. 

The deep freeze, the coldest to date this winter season, has strained the power grid, shattered daily temperature records and created havoc for travellers.

As of Thursday morning, extreme cold warnings remained in place in every region of Alberta. 

Environment Canada says the cold will bring wind-chill values between between –40 and –55.

In Edmonton, a high of  –26 C is expected Thursday afternoon, plunging to –29 overnight. In Calgary, the daytime temperature is expected to hover around –24  with a low of –30 overnight.

Furnaces have strained and car batteries have sputtered against the chill. Streets like polished glass have created havoc for travellers on city roads. Black ice and poor visibility have plagued provincial highways, straining the demand for roadside services. 

The Alberta Motor Association is asking for patience as the demand on their crews has multiplied in recent days. Members can expect to wait up to 84 hours for a tow or up to 61 hours for a battery boost.

Air travellers are also feeling the strain. Hundreds of flights have been grounded since Sunday due to inclement weather in Alberta and B.C.

Both the Edmonton and Calgary airports warned Thursday of ongoing delays for travellers. 

The Alberta Electric System Operator recorded a new all-time peak demand Monday. The operator issued a temporary grid alert on both Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, asking customers to cut back on usage or face the possibility of rolling brownouts.

As of Thursday morning, grid operations had returned to normal but customers are being encouraged to reduce their consumption until the cold snap subsides.

Several daily temperature records have been broken since the chill set in. According to a bulletin issued by Environment Canada, records were broken this week in more than 30 Alberta communities stretching from the badlands to the Rockies.