Hard freeze, snow headed to Alberta: Four things to know

Friday, November 7, 2014, 2:26 PM - After a bout of above-seasonal temperatures in Alberta, cold Arctic air is funneling into the Prairies, bringing a hard freeze and snow potential to portions of the province.

"Without question, the coldest Arctic air of the season will dive south from northern Canada," says Weather Network meteorologist Tyler Hamilton.

"Along and behind the passage of the cold front snow will develop, and as the Arctic high builds upsloping snow will bring significant snow to some areas."

Here are four things you need to know about the upcoming system.

1. TIMING

The system will impact the area between Saturday and Monday morning, with a hard freeze expected Sunday evening for parts of southern Alberta.

EXTENDED ACTIVE WEATHER COVERAGE: Tune in to The Weather Network on TV for continued updates on this system.

2. TEMPERATURES

"Temperatures will become a high profile story as Alberta," Hamilton says.

"Lethbridge and southern Alberta will likely see a 15C drop in temperatures in just 12 hours."

And the long range forecast is even more noteworthy.

"The largest temperature change will be for Lethbridge, which will see a high of +14C on Saturday. By Tuesday, that will fall to -13 degrees Celsius."

For the most part, frigid temperatures will settle in Tuesday morning with many communities in the -20C range, with locally cooler temperatures between Edmonton and Calgary.

"The city of Red Deer is forecasting a low of -26C with wind chills in excess of -30C for a wide swath of southern and central Alberta Tuesday morning," Hamilton adds.

RELATED VIDEO: RISK OF A FLASH FREEZE IN ALBERTA:

3. SNOWFALL FORECAST

• Calgary: 10-15 cm
• Edmonton: 5-10 cm
• Red Deer: 15-20 cm
• Grande Prairie: 20-30 cm
• Medicine Hat: 5-10 cm
• Lethbridge: 5-10 cm

Any rainfall in extreme southwestern Alberta has the potential to freeze on untreated roadways, creating dangerous road conditions.

4. WEATHER SUMMARY

• Snow will develop late Friday evening for northern Alberta and move south during the pre-dawn hours.
• There will be a freezing rain risk in Edmonton for several hours.
• Calgary could see mixing Saturday night but that will quickly change over to light snow.
• A heavier snow band will set up Sunday between Red Deer and Jasper. In some areas snowfall may approach 1-2cm/hour.
• On Sunday afternoon, precipitation will start as rain in Lethbridge, but quickly switch over to snow.
• Snow will eventually ease Sunday night but may linger in extreme southern Alberta into Monday morning.