A rainy, foggy Thursday morning in the Ottawa-Gatineau area turned icy later on, according to Environment Canada.

What was first a mix of weather alerts about fog, rain and a sudden drop in temperature had by 9 a.m become flash freeze warnings across eastern Ontario. Around 12:15 p.m. it extended into the western part of the Outaouais, starting roughly at Quyon.

The freeze is expected to reach communities including Pembroke, Shawville and Kingston in the afternoon, then reach the capital by late afternoon or early evening.

Petawawa was forecast to go from about 3 C at noon to –8 C at midnight, for example. At midnight its wind chill is expected to make it feel like –17.

"Things are getting icy out there," posted East Region provincial police around 10 a.m. By noon, temperatures had started to drop at some local weather stations without getting below freezing and by 2 p.m., Trenton had dropped to –1 C.

Five to 10 centimetres of snow is also expected Thursday in western communities such as Bancroft and Deep River.

English school buses are cancelled Thursday in parts of Renfrew County and north Hastings County.

Wednesday was the first day this year that the temperature at Ottawa's airport didn't dip below freezing. It bottomed out at exactly zero degrees.