"Consistent warmth unlikely for most of Canada" until May
Spring has definitely sprung in western Canada with cherry blossoms making their appearances, while winter weather continues to persist in the east. Read on to find out why 'consistent warmth' will be unlikely through May.
April is almost half over and eastern Canada is trailing the west, once again, in spring weather. To add insult to injury, a dominant jet stream pattern will keep much of the country from settling into any sort of pleasant, consistent warm conditions right up until May. More on this stubborn blocking pattern, below.
WINTER STILL SHOWING ITS UGLY SIDE
Where we left off last month, the east had the upper hand on the west for snowfall victories and it looks like that trend is continuing as April marches forward.
Just this week alone, parts of Atlantic Canada received a month’s worth of snow in a single storm, southern Quebec was hit with an April ice storm and there was more of the white stuff for Ottawa, though it came shortly after its record-breaking streak of it on the ground since November ended.
TURNING MOWERS INTO BLOWERS IN NOVA SCOTIA
On Tuesday, areas in southern New Brunswick and central Nova Scotia reportedly received 10 to 15 cm of snow, which, in some cases, was equivalent to the entire average April snowfall.
ICE STORM CAUSES POWER OUTAGES IN QUEBEC
Ice storm aftermath in Saint-Léonard, Que, April 9. Photo credit: Yadira Martinez
On Monday, southern portions of Quebec experienced a prolonged period of freezing rain, which accumulated to upwards of 20 mm of ice accretion in some locales, resulting in more than 300,000 customers losing power.
Ice storm impacts in Promenade des Îles, Laval, Que., April 9. Photo credit:Gabriella Reischl
As of April 10, and reported by CBC, about 110,000 homes and businesses just north of Montreal were still impacted by the power outages with the majority of them being in the regions of Laval, Lanaudière and the Laurentians.
To make things worse, some areas were also hit with 15-30-plus cm of snow, hindering Hydro-Québec’s efforts to restore power, along with 17 reports of fire and several CO poisioning incidents.
Wentworth, Que. after this week's ice storm. Photo credit: Wayne
OTTAWA'S SNOW STREAK COMES TO AN END
Until the morning of April 9, 2019, Ottawa had at least 1 cm of snow on the ground since Nov. 13, 2018 - making it 147 days since the first flakes coated the terrain.
The record ended that day, as for a brief time in the morning there was no recorded snow on the ground.
It didn’t last long, however, as Ottawa received additional snow Tuesday.
The winter was also harsh on the city’s budget, as it accumulated a $7.2-million deficit (for the seventh year in a row) on winter maintenance including more than $75 million spent on removing snow and ice from the area’s streets and sidewalks, according to CBC.
BONUS WARMTH DAYS IN ONTARIO
While cities such as Ottawa dealt with more snow this week, other parts of Ontario fared considerably better, with Windsor hitting 22.4 C, with no precipitation, Monday and was just a few degrees shy of a record for April 8.
MEANWHILE, SPRING BLOOMS IN B.C.
Cherry blossoms bloom in Vancouver, B.C., April 4. Photo credit:Christine Kim
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? 'INCONSISTENT WARMTH' RIGHT UP UNTIL MAY
During mid and late April, the dominant jet stream pattern will feature a blocking pattern over the North Atlantic. This pattern makes consistent warmth unlikely for most of Canada with several reinforcing shots of colder weather, especially from the central Prairies to Quebec.
However, temperatures will not be as consistently cold as what we saw last year during mid-April. We will have some warmer days mixed in at times, especially across Atlantic Canada where temperatures could tip to the warm side of seasonal for parts of the region during the second half of April.
With files from Weather Network meteorologist Dr. Doug Gillham