Brewing wintry system on East Coast may end historic snow drought
Parts of Atlantic Canada have only seen a tiny fraction of their normal snowfall so far this winter. An approaching storm will help end that streak.
A wintry system is in the works to end the week across parts of Atlantic Canada.
This brewing storm will slide up the East Coast on Friday and Saturday, bringing a modest blanket of snow to parts of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.
These won't be blockbuster snowfall totals by any means. But it could be the largest snowfall of the season in Halifax, potentially putting a dent in the historic snow drought that’s befallen the region so far this winter.
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We’re watching the western Atlantic for the development of a low-pressure system at the end of the week. This system will slide up the East Coast on Friday and Saturday, producing a swath of heavy snow near the coasts of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.
The system’s band of heaviest snow should remain just offshore, but close enough to the coast that communities near the ocean will see higher totals than those farther inland.
We’re looking at the potential for 10-15 cm of snow for much of Nova Scotia during the day on Friday. Heavier totals are expected for the southern coasts near Yarmouth, where 15-20 cm of snow may fall by the end of the system.
The low will move toward Newfoundland on Friday evening and linger into the first half of Saturday, bringing accumulating snow to the Avalon Peninsula. Folks in and around St. John’s are on track to pick up 10-15 cm of snow to start the weekend.
Minor accumulations are expected across the rest of the Maritimes and Newfoundland, with general totals of 5 cm or less in the forecast through Saturday.
While it’s not a huge snowstorm by any stretch, it’s a big deal for a part of the country that’s been waiting—and waiting, and waiting some more—for decent snow all winter.
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This season has been a tale of many winters across the Atlantic provinces. Folks in northern New Brunswick have seen repeated swaths of healthy snowfalls this season, while communities along parts of the Nova Scotian coast could practically count the snowflakes that have fallen this year.
It’s been a truly historic snow drought in Halifax these past couple of months.
Observers at the Halifax Airport have only recorded 6 cm of snow so far, a seasonal total practically unheard of for this late into January. Halifax would have typically measured about 90 cm of snow by this point in a normal winter.
If the forecast pans out, Halifax could easily double or triple their seasonal total by this weekend.
Check back for the latest as this wintry system approaches Atlantic Canada.
