A two-day deep freeze is about to hit our region. The forecast for Hawkesbury on Thursday, February 2, is a relatively mild -2 degrees Celsius with flurries, but temperatures are going to drop fast overnight. The forecast for Hawkesbury on Friday, February 3 is -25 degrees Celsius. On the good old Fahrenheit scale, that’s -13 degrees! The good news is it will be sunny on Friday!
On Saturday, February 4, it’s going to seem tropical compared to Friday. The Hawkesbury forecast that day is a balmy -15 degrees Celsius with a mix of sun and cloud.
The Lachute area forecast from Environment Canada is not much different. The temperature on Friday is expected to be -26 degrees Celsius but sunny. Saturday’s forecast is -17 degrees Celsius and sunny.
By Sunday, February 5, temperatures are expected to warm up significantly with daytime highs one or two degrees above freezing.
Extreme Cold Warning in effect
An Extreme Cold Warning is already in effect for the Hawkesbury and Lachute areas. Wind chills of -40 to -45 degrees Celsius are expected in the Hawkesbury area, and wind chills of -38 to -50 degrees Celsius are expected in the Lachute area.
Environment Canada reminds that extreme cold puts everyone at risk and extra care should be taken to protect yourself.
Dress warmly. Dress in layers that you can remove if you get too warm. The outer layer should be wind resistant.
Cover up. Frostbite can develop within minutes on exposed skin, especially with wind chill.
Outdoor workers should take regularly scheduled breaks to warm up.
Extreme cold warnings are issued when very cold temperatures or wind chill creates an elevated risk to health such as frost bite and hypothermia.
