Colleen Bready’s forecast: A winter wallop is on the way

Colleen Bready has your current conditions and updated weather forecast for Jan. 16, 2025.

Get ready for a winter wallop; the first snowstorm of 2025 is on its way to Manitoba.

Weather conditions Thursday will be mild and uneventful for Winnipeg, with the exception of strong and gusting south winds. A few flurries are possible.

Call it the calm before the storm. Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has issued a winter storm watch for the city and the Red River Valley. Snow and blowing snow in very strong northerly winds are expected on Friday.

An Alberta clipper will first spread heavy snow across central Manitoba starting Thursday afternoon. The weather agency has issued a snowfall warning for the region, anticipating 15 to 25 cm of heavy snow into Friday.

While snow continues in central Manitoba, relatively mild but windy conditions will continue tonight in the south. Temperatures will rise overnight to around the freezing mark by Friday morning.

At this point, snow and blowing snow are expected to start early Friday morning in Winnipeg and the Red River Valley, as commuters are setting out on roads and highways.

Be prepared for the possibility of a tough drive to work in the morning and home again in the afternoon. There is the potential for highway closures in such conditions.

By their nature, clippers usually move quickly. Snow should move out of the Red River Valley on Friday afternoon, but blowing snow will remain a concern, with very strong north winds continuing all day. Wind gusts of 80 km/h or higher are expected.

Snow will also spread into northwestern Ontario. Communities further north under a snowfall warning will see heavy snow arrive Thursday night, while areas further south, including Kenora and Dryden, will see much less snow move in on Friday.

The passage of the clipper’s mighty cold front will deliver a blast of bitterly cold arctic air to Manitoba and northwestern Ontario. Temperatures will plummet Friday night and remain well below normal well into next week.