Another wintry mid-week mess for the Maritimes
Heavy snow, ice pellets, freezing rain, rain and gusty winds arrive on Wednesday
Yet another snowy, icy system is on the way to the Maritimes for Wednesday.
This system will have a taste of everything, with heavy snow, ice pellets, freezing rain and even rain and drizzle mixing in for some. The winds will also be gusting across the region.
Below is my first crack at a snow, ice and rainfall map based on the current track. I'll be updating this on Tuesday as the storm approaches. As of now, the heaviest snowfall looks set for New Brunswick, which is where we'll very likely see snow totals exceeding 15 centimetres.
For southern New Brunswick, P.E.I. and across Nova Scotia, snowfall will mix to a healthy serving of ice pellets with totals looking more likely to land in the five to 15 centimetre range. We'll then see a coating of freezing rain and drizzle on top.
In terms of timing, some uncertainty remains. However, it appears the snow will move through on Wednesday morning for much of the region, arriving before or during the morning commute for Halifax, Moncton, Fredericton and Saint John.
Timing
Winds will strengthen with widespread gusts 60 to 80 km/h or more as snow and blowing snow mixes to wind-driven ice pellets then freezing rain, rain and drizzle late Wednesday morning and through the afternoon for the Fundy coast of New Brunswick and mainland Nova Scotia.
Our next system moves into the Maritimes early Wednesday.<br>Snow for the morning commute for most, with a transition to ice pellets & freezing rain for some Wed afternoon & evening. <br>Mix to rain likely for southwest Nova Scotia & along Atlantic coastline.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/nsstorm?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#nsstorm</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/nbstorm?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#nbstorm</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pestorm?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#pestorm</a> <a href="https://t.co/hFablA0Dl6">pic.twitter.com/hFablA0Dl6</a>
We'll have to keep an eye on the track and timing as the storm approaches, but as of now the drive home looks like an icy one for many, including in Halifax. Stay tuned.
Cape Breton and P.E.I. look more likely to transition to ice during the early evening hours.
Any areas that do mix to ice and rain will transition back to flurries overnight and into Thursday as temperatures fall once again.
More updates
I'll have a complete update and forecast this evening on CBC TV at 6 p.m. and be sure to stay tuned to the live blog for the latest on Tuesday and Wednesday as the storm rolls in.
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