It’s a snowy, windy Friday on most of the island and in parts of Labrador this morning as that system which dumped on Ontario, Quebec and parts of the Maritimes made its way east.
Environment Canada has weather alerts out for the entire island. The west coast, Northern Peninsula, and central will see the bulk of the snowfall with 15 to 20 cm, while the eastern portion is in for less than 5 cm before changing to freezing drizzle.
Compounding the problem is the wind, with strong gusts reported across the island.
Environment Canada meteorologist Dale Foote says gusts in the Wreckhouse ramped up to 170 km/h earlier this morning. Blowing snow is expected to be an issue in many areas throughout the day.
Gusts will be in the 70 to 80 km/h range for most. Winds will peak on the Avalon around mid-morning as the snow changes to freezing rain.
An Environment Canada map shows weather warnings in effect for for the island and parts of Labrador.
Several schools are closed or will delay opening. All schools in the metro area will delay opening for three hours.
There are several cancellations and delays at St. John’s International Airport for flights originally scheduled for this morning and early afternoon.
Conditions will improve on the eastern portion of the island for the evening, but that won’t be the case for parts of northeastern and western Newfoundland.
Anyone with plans to celebrate Valentine’s Day should be good to do so on the east coast and in central. Conditions may not be ideal on the northeast and west coast with flurries and blustery winds throughout the night.
A full list of cancellations can be found on the Storm Watch page
