‘It is coming, it is cold’: 2-4 cm of snow Saturday, frigid temperatures starting Sunday in Ottawa

Skaters enjoy a skate on the Rideau Canal Skateway in Ottawa. (Brad Quinn/CTV News Ottawa)

Ottawa will receive a significant dose of winter weather this weekend, with 2 to 4 centimetres of snow on Saturday followed by frigid temperatures starting on Sunday.

“We get a lot of cold air coming from the north for different reasons,” David Phillips, Environment Canada’s senior climatologist, tells Newstalk 580 CFRA’s Ottawa at Work with Patricia Boal.

“Whether it’s (a Polar Vortex), or whether it’s a Siberian Express, or a polar pipeline or an Arctic outbreak, don’t really care what it is. We know that it is coming, it is cold.”

Environment Canada’s forecast calls for up to 4 cm of snow and a high of 0 C on Saturday, before temperatures drop to -18 C Saturday night and -21 C on Sunday.

A note on the weather agency’s website warns wind chill values will range between -30 and -37 from Sunday until the middle of next week.

Phillips says the cold weather will cover much of Canada and the United States.

“We’ve had a lot of cool weather since the first of January,” Phillips says, noting there has only been one hour with the temperature hitting 0 C in Ottawa since New Year’s Day.

“It’s likely that you’re going to see possibly, as far as I can see out to the next two-and-a-half weeks, every day is going to be below freezing. The Polar Vortex, if that’s what you want to call it, might be there till mid-week of next week and then the cold stays; it’s not going away, it’s being resupplied by more cold air from the Arctic.”

With a deep-freeze on the way, Marc-Antoine Deschamps with the Ottawa Paramedic Service, says it’s important to first assess the need to be outside.

“If you don’t have to be outside, you should stay inside. We have to be very careful with the vulnerable population, we’re talking about the very young, the elderly, the shelter community. These people are more at risk to frostbite,” Deschamps says. “If you go outside, the first thing is prevention. Wear a toque, a neck warmer and make sure you have mitts that have plenty of room that are not too tight. The same thing with your boots and make sure you dress in layers.”

Deschamps says in cold weather, the addition of a windchill factor can cause the onset of frostbite in a matter of minutes, and to know the signs of some of its tell-tale signs.

“First of all, the skin will turn red or change colour before becoming painful and can have a waxy kind of look. When that happens, seek shelter and do not warm the area too quickly. Do not use hot water; you can use your own body heat to re-warm the affected area,” says Deschamps. “And look out for each other. If you see your friend, your colleague that is developing signs of frostbite, let them know and try to get them into warmth and make sure the areas covered.”

Environment Canada says it will be cloudy in Ottawa today. High -2 C, with the wind chill making it feel like -4 this afternoon.

Mainly cloudy tonight with a 40 per cent chance of flurries overnight. The temperature steady near -1 C.

Ottawa could see 2 to 4 cm of snow on Saturday. Temperature steady near 0 C.

A mix of sun and cloud on Sunday. High -11 C.

The outlook for Monday calls for sunshine with a high of -18 C.

The normal temperatures for this time of year are a high of -6 C and a low of -16 C.

Phillips says Ottawa will see a “good, old-fashioned kind of” winter through January and February.

“What we see over the next three weeks is no melting and no rain,” Phillips says. “It’s just absolutely good ice growing weather, and then some warming maybe in February but, I don’t know, this bout of cold weather is very long lasting.”

Rideau Canal Skateway

The green flag is flying on the Rideau Canal Skateway.

The National Capital Commission says the skateway is open between Laurier Avenue and Dow’s Lake and the Carleton University Library.

The NCC announced Friday that the final section of the skateway between Laurier Avenue and Rideau will open at 8 a.m. Saturday.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Tyler Fleming