Plug in your cars and dress in layers, as frigid temperatures will arrive in Prince Albert tomorrow. (Rob Mahon/paNOW Staff)

By Rob Mahon

Bundle Up

December to open with extreme cold in Prince Albert area

Nov 30, 2022 | 12:35 PM

As soon as the calendar turns, the temperature is in for a sharp drop in the Prince Albert area. In fact, the first -30C day of winter could be just a few hours away.

With light snow falling throughout the morning today, the temperature will rise slightly during the day. Even as soon as Wednesday night, the lighter snow and cloud cover will help prevent it from getting too cold. By Thursday, however, that cloud cover will be gone.

“Accordingly, temperatures start to drop,” said Brian Proctor, meteorologist with Environment Canada. “We’re looking for a high on Thursday of about -20C, overnight low on Thursday night, and Friday morning of -32C.”

The weekend isn’t bringing much relief either, as Friday night and Saturday morning will likely see a low of below -30C as well. Sunday provides a bit of a breather with a high of -9C, but from there it’s right back down into the cooler air.

“It does look that way that we’re going to remain relatively cool into the middle of next work week,” Proctor said, “then maybe a gradual, slow moderation in temperatures. We’re not seeing any really sharp warmup in the forecast right through the next ten days.”

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Generally speaking, sharp warmups don’t come when the temperature sinks like this. When cold weather sets in for Saskatchewan, most of the time it stays around for a while.

“We’ve really got a fairly significant trough over the prairies,” said Proctor. “That’s bringing cold air down out of the eastern portion of the Mackenzie valley and the western portion of the Arctic down into northern Saskatchewan.”

With that in mind, a quick look at northern communities in Saskatchewan gives us a preview of what’s making its way south. In Stony Rapids, for example, the windchill is already about -45C. It might not be long before the windchill drops the temperature that low in Prince Albert as well.

“I would not doubt it at all,” Proctor said. “If we keep that flow up just strong enough to keep those windchills up, we’re probably going to see something, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it really tomorrow night into Friday morning.”

Proctor added the middle of next work week should see the beginning of a warm-up, though still only to about seasonal averages. He also said weather patterns elsewhere in the world, including in the equatorial Pacific, mean December as a whole will likely be colder and snowier than average.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP