Freezing rain is still falling across the Waterloo region, Guelph, and Wellington County, which will impact travel during the Wednesday afternoon commute.
Earlier today, school buses were canceled while schools remained open.
A yellow-level weather warning was issued on Wednesday afternoon for freezing drizzle, expected to “linger” into the evening. This yellow warning has replaced an earlier orange-level warning for freezing rain.
The weather alert indicated that freezing drizzle could continue overnight.
“Roads, walkways, and other surfaces will likely become icy and slippery. There is risk of injury due to slips and falls,” the warning noted.
To the east in Toronto, a winter storm yellow-level warning is in place. The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) reported over 160 weather-related crashes during the morning and early afternoon hours.
“It will be a messy day,” OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt cautioned people in a video on X, formerly Twitter. “Keep your eyes up, hands on the wheel, eyes on the road, keep your mind focused on the task of driving; let’s make sure we get through this day without a problem.”
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Some tree branches had fallen onto a path in Kitchener’s Victoria Park on Wednesday afternoon. (Kate Bueckert/CBC)
-“Ice jams can form quickly resulting unexpectedly fast rises water levels hence causing localized flooding,” they advised.nn People should take care near any bodies where possible keeping off banks/ice cover weakened by warmer climates.
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School buses cancelled
Student Transportation Services of Waterloo Region announced that buses and other school transportation were canceled “due to the forecasted freezing rain.” Schools in Waterloo region stayed open along with all extended day child care programs; St. Louis online classes as well as daytime and evening classes were also expected to be available for community use programs. Francobus, servicing French-language schools, also confirmed that buses were canceled in Waterloo region today. Student Transportation Services of Wellington-Dufferin reported that school buses across all zones were canceled on Wednesday. GO Transit warned customers about potential delays for its routes throughout southwestern Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area while advising people to plan ahead and allow extra travel time.More weather systems moving in
Geoff Coulson, a meteorologist specializing in warnings at Environment Canada, told CBC K-W’s The Morning Edition host Craig Norris that people can expect “patchy freezing drizzle” into Wednesday evening and possibly overnight. An orange-level warning was issued due to how long this weather event might last. “We’re looking at several hours of steady freezing rain with potential significant ice accumulation,” he said. Coulson added that these “notable impacts” from ice could lead to “power outages or tree branches breaking under the weight of ice.” Coulson mentioned that Thursday should bring a “relatively quiet weather day with temperatures slightly above seasonal values,” but he did warn about another system approaching for Friday. “Another system potentially bringing more freezing rain is forecasted to move into the area on Friday before it moves out again. Then we head into the weekend with yet another storm system likely bringing some snow on Sunday. So we’re getting into quite an active weather pattern,” he explained. The temperatures are expected to be milder than usual which may influence what kind of precipitation occurs here. Coulson stated it’s too soon to determine if more weather warnings might be issued in coming days. “It looks like this system isn’t as well-organized as what we’re experiencing right now but it’s definitely something forecasters will keep monitoring closely,” he noted.LISTEN | Environment Canada’s Geoff Coulson explains Wednesday’s orange weather warning:The Morning Edition – K-W4:33Environment Canada breaks down the orange level freezing rain warningFreezing rain leads to several millimeters of ice buildup. This latest round of winter conditions could affect your commute while posing risks for personal safety. Geoff Coulson from Environment Canada explains why this freezing rain falls under an orange warning.Flooding possible
The Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) issued a statement last week indicating there’s a risk of flooding along with potential ice jams in certain areas. The snowpack is “higher than normal” throughout the watershed which will help absorb some rainfall but some snow will also melt away when temperatures rise closer together.” n The GRCA warns that as warmer temps start melting ice from rivers there may be risks involving sudden increases water levels related ice jams particularly around areas prone such problems.-“Ice jams can form quickly resulting unexpectedly fast rises water levels hence causing localized flooding,” they advised.nn People should take care near any bodies where possible keeping off banks/ice cover weakened by warmer climates.
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