Extreme cold warning issued for all parts of P.E.I.
Kevin Yarr | CBC News | Posted: February 2, 2023 11:00 AM | Last Updated: February 3, 2023
With the wind chill, temperatures that feel as cold as –35 C to –40 C are expected to develop Friday night
Environment Canada has issued an extreme cold warning for all of Prince Edward Island.
On Friday, an arctic air mass will combine with strong northwest winds to give bitterly cold conditions.
With the wind chill, temperatures that feel as cold as –35 C to –40 C are expected to develop Friday night and will persist into Saturday morning before beginning to moderate Saturday afternoon as winds subside.
Extreme cold warnings are issued when very cold temperatures or wind chills create an elevated risk to health such as frostbite and hypothermia.
Environment Canada is reminding Islanders to cover up because frostbite can develop within minutes on exposed skin, especially with wind chill.
The agency advises watching for cold-related symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain, muscle pain and weakness, numbness and colour change in fingers and toes.
'Dramatic fall' in temperature
CBC meteorologist Tina Simpkin said Islanders will start to feel that cold air coming down from the arctic during the day on Friday, with the wind turning to come out of the northwest around noon.
"The morning will start off around –1, but in the afternoon our temperatures are going to fall back around –15. That's quite the dramatic fall," said Simpkin.
That rapid drop in the temperature could create some icy patches on roads, she said.
The temperature measured at Charlottetown Airport, since 2017, will typically drop below –20 C once or twice in each of the winter months, but in the last six years the temperature never quite hit –24 C. On Feb. 12, 2017 it almost got there, dipping to –23.9 C. The last time a wind chill value below –40 C was measured was in 2004.
The unusually warm January, 6.6 C above normal, could make this cold snap feel that much colder. January was the 18th consecutive month where the measured temperature was above normal, as measured from 1981 to 2010.
Winds are forecast to ease Saturday afternoon, bringing some relief, but the forecast high is just –15 C. The temperature will fall to close to –20 C again Saturday night, with a high of –6 C forecast for Sunday.
Corrections:- This story previously stated fire halls would be open as warming shelters in Charlottetown and Summerside. In fact, Charlottetown has no plans to open a fire hall as a warming shelter. February 2, 2023 6:32 PM