It’s shaping up to be a nasty blast of winter across the Prairies today with snowstorms and blizzards set to dump up to 30 centimetres in some areas.
Environment Canada says heavy snow will have a stranglehold on morning commutes in parts of northwestern Alberta, starting in Grande Prairie and heading east towards Edmonton, before tapering off later Wednesday.
Blizzard conditions are also likely to develop in areas near the Alberta-Saskatchewan boundary, with wind gusts in cities such as Regina and Saskatoon reaching up to 110 kilometres an hour.
The weather office says residents should be prepared for possible school and road closures, as well as scattered utility outages.
The snowfall warning is in effect Wednesday morning for the City of Edmonton and the surrounding Parkland, Sturgeon and Leduc counties, along with communities like Pigeon Lake, Calmar, Morinville, Sherwood Park. St. Albert, Wabamun, Bon Accord and Gibbons.
Snow will likely affect many people’s drive both to and from work on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Alberta can expect bitter wind chills near -45 C through until Thursday.
On Christmas Day, Environment Canada says most of the province can expect sunshine with a high of -13.
Due to the expected snow, the City of Edmonton has declared a citywide Phase 1 parking ban to take effect Wednesday night.
The ban for arterial roads, collector roads, bus routes, and roads within business improvement areas starts Dec. 17 at 7 p.m.
Crews will be actively clearing roads 24 hours a day and the city anticipates the parking ban to be in effect for three to five days.
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