Up to 60 cm of snow expected in parts of Ontario, snow squall warning in effect for some areas

Up to 60 centimetres of snow is expected to fall in parts of southern Ontario Thursday, as Environment Canada issues snow squall warnings for the most affected areas.

Up to 60 centimetres of snow is expected to fall in parts of southern Ontario Thursday, as Environment Canada issues snow squall warnings for the most affected areas.

The lake effect snow squalls will hit the cities and towns surrounding Lake Simcoe and Georgian Bay the hardest.

Barrie, Orillia, Collingwood, Midland, and Wasaga Beach look poised to get the worst of it, and the heavy snow blowing at gusts of up to 60 km/h in those areas could make for poor visibility at times over the next 24 hours, the national weather agency said.

“Visibility will be suddenly reduced to near zero at times in heavy snow and blowing snow. Rapidly accumulating snow will make travel difficult,” Environment Canada said in its warning.

Areas east of Toronto, including Cobourg and Peterborough, are also included in the warning as 25 centimetres of snow is expected to fall there over the next day.

West of the city, weather advisories are in effect for Kitchener, Guelph, and Stratford, where up to 10 centimetres of snowfall is expected. In Oakville, which is included in the winter travel advisory, Ontario Provincial Police said officers are responding to “multiple collisions” and that snow is already covering the roads in some areas.

Environment Canada is forecasting that the lake effect snow will move south Friday morning before returning this weekend over some areas.