Prairie forecast: Cold start for the east, overall warm, dry expected [Video]

Well, last week was warmer, and overall the weather models did a good job with the forecast. The part that that didn’t play out quite as expected was the storm system that impacted the eastern Prairies on Sunday and Monday. While the models showed potential for snow in that period, they missed the strength and positioning of the low, which resulted in more snow than initially expected.

To start this forecast period, the strong area of low pressure that tracked through the eastern Prairies is now over Hudson Bay. The rotation around this low is opening the door for a strong, very cold Arctic high to build southwards into the eastern Prairies. This looks to bring some of the coldest temperatures so far this winter to eastern Saskatchewan and western Manitoba. The good news is that it doesn’t look like the cold air will stick around long.