Public schools cancelled as storm bears down on P.E.I.
CBC
With temperatures hovering around freezing across P.E.I., weather conditions vary a lot across the Island Thursday morning with a mix of snow, freezing rain and rain.
Public schools have cancelled classes with a freezing rain warning in place for Kings and Queens counties and a snowfall warning for Prince County. Provincial civil service offices in Prince County are delaying opening.
Holland College has shut down and UPEI has announced a delay.
Road conditions vary from partly snow covered to clear, with reduced visibility in the central part of the province. In Charlottetown there is little sign yet of the storm, with light rain falling.
"The radar is showing quite the variety of weather," said CBC meteorologist Tina Simpkin.
"That line between ice pellets and freezing rain is actually crossing through Summerside right now. And it does have that mixed phase of precipitation for Kings and Queens counties, in the form of freezing rain and rain."
The plow dispatcher in Prince County said snow started falling west of O'Leary about 3 a.m., but it has been mostly rain in other areas. In Kings County the precipitation has been shifting back and forth between rain and freezing rain south of Montague, but has been mostly rain north of that. In Queens County there was an extended period of freezing rain which has since turned back to rain, but the plow dispatcher said there could still be ice on secondary roads.
Prince County can expect another five to 15 centimeters of snow. In the rest of the province the potential for freezing rain will continue for several hours, perhaps even into the afternoon for Kings County.
Visibility will be a problem where there is snow, with winds blowing at 30 km/h with gusts to 50.
Temperatures are expected to fall but remain close to zero. With the lower temperatures the precipitation is expected to turn to snow and ice pellets across P.E.I. in the afternoon, but there is still a chance it could shift back to freezing rain this evening.
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