THUNDER BAY – Residents woke up on Friday to a bit more of a chill than they’ve grown used to over the previous weeks.
Environment Canada said it’s not expected to last long -- as winter and spring “battle” for control of the region.
“We saw temperatures got up to five degrees in Thunder Bay by eight o'clock last night. Normally high for the day would be minus three. So, right away, that's eight degrees warmer than normal, but 12 hours later, it was -15,” said Environment Canada senior climatologist David Phillips.
“I'm not talking about the wind chill, just the honest temperature and I think that even got lower later, -17. So, it's been kind of a cold day today, we're talking about the high being around -7. Again, it should be -3.
"So, it's four degrees cooler than normal and tonight we would see possibly one of those -20 days.”
With Thunder Bay experiencing such a mild and dry winter, many residents are already considering putting away those shovels and snowblowers. Phillips said residents should keep those tools handy as -- whether it’s rain or snow -- precipitation is in the forecast.
“Don't put away the snow shovel, don't take the snow tires off quite yet. About 20 per cent of what you normally would get is yet to come and also some cold days,” he said.
“What we're getting right now though is a very typical kind of a pattern that you see at this time of the year. This kind of fickle and fitful kind of weather where winter wants to get a foothold and spring wants to arrive.”
As it always does, spring will eventually win the tug-of-war. Phillips believes the end is nearly in sight.
“You're gaining about three minutes a day [of sun] in Thunder Bay and you can feel that sun is much, much, much higher in the sky,” he said.
“If you're walking down the main street in Thunder Bay, you can actually feel the sun on your skin in late February, early March -- as you couldn't in January or December. So, everything's looking up.
"Our models seem to suggest that it looks like a milder than normal March, but again, it's not muscle shirt and tank top kind of March.”
