Freezing rain brings slippery driving for GTA

Slick and icy roads in some spots are making for a tricky commute in parts of southern Ontario today.

Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement because of freezing drizzle, and then snow squalls in the snow belts.

The weather statement covers much of southern Ontario, including London-Middlesex, the Niagara region, north to the Algonquin area and east to Kingston-Prince Edward.

Areas of freezing drizzle developed during the night across several regions.

There are reports of slippery roads and numerous accidents in the greater Toronto area.

Conditions should improve a little later in the morning, as the freezing drizzle becomes patchy before ending.

-- The Canadian Press

Icy roads mean dangerous driving south of Ontario

A pedestrian clears off a car as lake-effect snow bands again set up on Dec.14, 2010, in Buffalo, New York. John Normile/GETTY IMAGES

If you’re planning on driving south of the border today, watch out for closed roads and slick conditions as there are widespread reports Thursday of frozen roads from North Carolina to Florida.

Ice-slicked roads created treacherous driving conditions that caused a fatal accident and delayed school openings across a swath of the country, mainly in the South, while the East Coast braced for more snow.

U.S. Midwest digs out after powerful storm

Traffic travels slowly on northbound Hwy 45, Sunday, Dec. 12, 2010 north of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT)

CHICAGO— A powerful storm that unleashed snow and strong winds across the upper Midwest left behind dangerously cold temperatures, promising a new set of challenges for people working to dig out.

More heavy snow for southwestern Ontario

A man walks past a couple of completely buried vehicles during a winter storm that has dumped over 80 centimetres of snow in London on Tuesday, December 7, 2010. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Dave Chidley)

Environment Canada has kept a snow squall warning in effect as heavy snowfall continues to pummel parts of southwestern Ontario, thanks to strong winds forming off Lake Huron and Georgian Bay.

London, Parkhill and eastern Middlesex County are all under the warning and facing harsh winter conditions, including intense flurries, for the third day in a row. London has been hit particularly hard: an estimated 1.5 metres of snow has fallen over northwestern and southwestern sections of the city since the extreme winter conditions began this week.

Due to the snowfall, school and university classes are cancelled in London today—some for the third day in a row.

“All classes and exams are cancelled, and all faculty, staff and students are encouraged to stay home,” reads the University of Western Ontario’s website.

Classes have also been cancelled at London’s Fanshawe College, as well as in the Middlesex and Elgin counties.

London’s public transit has also been halted because of the snow-filled streets, and not expected to start up again until at least tomorrow.

Another squall extending from Georgian Bay towards Barrie could cause five to eight centimetres of snow per hour, though it will likely weaken as the day goes on.

Relief may also be on the way for the London area. Environment Canada predicts squalls will be increasingly scattered and should gradually weaken tonight.

By comparison, Toronto is faring well. Environment Canada predicts a mix of sun and cloud with temperatures hitting a high of -4 C and a low of -12 C.

There is a 60 per cent chance of flurries over eastern Toronto, and wind could reach 20 km/h.

-- Wendy Gillis, Staff Reporter

Tyler Edwards shovels a snow drift from the roof of his London home. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Dave Chidley)

Travellers stranded in Europe's deep freeze

Cars are stuck on a road during a heavy snowstorm near Neu Mukran on the island of Ruegen at the Baltic Sea, northern Germany, Thursday, Dec. 2, 2010. Large parts of Germany were hit by heavy snowfalls and icy winds. (Jens Koehler/The Associated Press)

LONDON—Heavy snow caused travel chaos across much of northern Europe on Thursday, keeping London's Gatwick airport closed for a second day and disrupting road and rail travel in France, Germany and Switzerland.

Volcano cuts short Obama's Indonesia visit

Soldiers and rescue workers transported by a military vehicle searching for more victims in Kalitengah village in the Sleman district of Indonesia's central Java province Nov. 10, 2010. REUTERS/Sigit Pamungkas

MOUNT MERAPI, Indonesia — Indonesia's most volatile volcano spewed clouds of ash high into the sky Wednesday, forcing some international airlines to again cancel flights and President Barack Obama to cut short his visit.

The official death toll, meanwhile, climbed by more than 40 to 191.

Fall colours expected to be 'spectacular'

 

Conditions are set for a spectacular, Technicolour display of fall foliage over the next few weeks, according to weather experts. (CARLOS OSORIOS/TORONTO STAR FILE PHOTO)

After the great summer we’ve had, get ready for “nature’s bonus.”

That’s how David Phillips, senior climatologist with Environment Canada, describes the season when leaves turn fiery red, deep burgundy, orange and burnt sienna.

With the first full day of autumn arriving Thursday, there is nothing to suggest anything but “a spectacular” viewing season in the coming weeks, Phillips said.

The conditions this summer have laid the groundwork for an ideal season, which should peak in southern Ontario just after Thanksgiving Day on Oct. 11.

All summer, we’ve had lots of sunshine and an ample supply of rain.

“The trees are in great shape and showing no distress,” said Phillips. “If there’s been drought, leaves will turn brown and fall early. Trees don’t even like smog, so this has been a perfect season for them.”

The warm temperatures all summer have warmed the Great Lakes, meaning the colour change season will be a little bit delayed this year.

Though the long-range forecast suggests we might see a touch of frost, it won’t be a killing frost that can lay bare all the glorious colours.

“Everything is working towards making this the most spectacular, Technicolor season we’ve seen in a long time,” Phillips said.

Of course, the other end of the equation is that lots of sunshine will allow the leaves to show off their brilliance in a blaze of glory.

“The weather for viewing is almost like the frame for the perfect picture,” Phillips said. “We’re going to see rain this week, but we won’t see any remnants of hurricanes or wind storms.”

Nothing wrecks a fall colour change season like wind, rain and frost. Except for some rain this week, no frost or gale-force winds are on the horizon.

Colours are affected by a variety of elements, such as daylight hours, elevation and latitude. Colour changes come quickest at higher elevations and the further north you go.

Currently, we are seeing small pockets of change in northwestern Ontario towards Thunder Bay and Kenora, according to Ontario Tourism’s website parksreport.com. In Central Ontario, the Parry Sound area is reporting just the odd tree with small pockets of orange and red.

There is hardly any colour change in the GTA.

To view a live report of the colour changes in Ontario and to see the peak viewing times for various parts of the province, log on to Ontario Tourism’s website www.parkreports.com/fall.

 --Curtis Rush, Staff Reporter