Environment Canada said all of Alberta and most of British Columbia and Saskatchewan, along with parts of Manitoba and Ontario, are under extreme cold weather warnings. Frigid temperatures and arctic air have ravaged most western provinces with wind chills down to an incredible -40C to 55 C in Edmonton and Calgary.
Many of the ski hills in and around Edmonton and Calgary, as well as in the Rocky Mountains, have already been closed for several days due to extreme cold.
Environment Canada said cold, arctic air remains entrenched over western and central Saskatchewan with wind chills of up to -45 C.
Arctic winds and low temperatures have also been forecast for much of British Columbia with the mercury dipping to near or below -20 C, it said. Extreme cold could persist into next week.
However the weather was a plus for Iceville, the largest outdoor rink on the Prairies, which is being built for the second year in a row at Regina’s Mosaic Stadium, and is set to open at noon on New Year’s Eve.
Mark Rathwell of the Regina Exhibition Association, which operates the stadium, said there was some freezing and thawing when crews were building the rink last year. But this year, it’s been cold since they started building it two weeks ago.
Many cities in Western Canada have already opened emergency shelters and warming centres for people who aren’t able to stay outdoors, including Vancouver, where it was -11 on Monday. That’s almost a record low for the city, which was set in 1971 when it dipped to -12.8 degrees.
Edmonton officials said Monday they were suspending non-essential snow clearing due to the extreme cold, noting that it was risky for employees, contractors and their equipment.
Manitoba was expecting temperatures to drop sharply with extreme wind chills near minus 40 developing overnight Tuesday. Bitterly cold temperatures were expected to persist through the week and then last through the remainder of the year.
Extreme cold warnings are issued when very cold temperatures or wind chill creates an elevated risk to health such as frost bite and hypothermia. People are warned to watch for cold related symptoms: shortness of breath, chest pain, muscle pain and weakness, numbness and colour change in fingers and toes.
Meanwhile in the US…
The Pacific Northwest and Sierra Nevada mountain range grappled Tuesday with another day of snow, ice and unseasonable cold that has disrupted traffic, caused closures and forced people to find refuge in emergency warming shelters.
Across western Washington and Oregon, officials and private groups opened emergency spaces for people as forecasters said the extreme cold from an arctic blast that blew in Sunday could last until the weekend.
Farther south, part of the main highway from San Francisco to Reno remained closed Tuesday for a third day due to record-setting snow in the Lake Tahoe area after a winter storm blasted across northern California and Nevada.
Snow-choked Interstate 80 shut down Sunday from the Nevada state line to Placer County, California, although Caltrans said US 50 reopened late Monday for vehicles with chains or four-wheel drive.
Snow showers began in the Northwest on Sunday from the Gulf of Alaska, dumping up to 6 inches (15 centimeters) across the Seattle area. Another storm dropped more snow in western Washington and Oregon late Monday and Tuesday.
The region continued to break daily cold records. The National Weather Service said the low was 17 degrees F (-8.3 C) in Seattle on Monday, breaking a record set in 1968. Bellingham, Washington, plunged to 7 F (-13.9 C) on Monday, tying a record set in 1968.
State officials in Oregon have declared an emergency. In Multnomah County – home to Portland – about a half dozen weather shelters were open. Seattle city leaders also opened at least six severe weather shelters and the mayor declared an emergency.
With temperatures in western Washington and Oregon not forecast to rise above freezing for days, officials were planning on keeping emergency shelters for longer than initially expected. Seattle leaders said city shelters will remain open through the new year.
Utilities reported about 5,000 customers without power Tuesday morning, mostly in southwestern Oregon.
At Donner Pass in the Sierra, officials with the University of California, Berkeley’s Central Sierra Snow Laboratory on Monday said recent snowfall has smashed the snowiest December record of 179 inches (4.6 meters), set in 1970. The record is now 193.7 inches (4.9 meters) as more snow is expected.
The snowpack in the Sierra was at dangerously low levels after recent weeks of dry weather but the state Department of Water Resources reported on Monday that the snowpack was between 145% and 161% of normal across the range with more snow expected, which will help in a region experiencing a protracted drought.
With temperatures in western Washington and Oregon not forecast to rise above freezing for days, officials were planning on keeping emergency shelters for longer than initially expected.
Seattle leaders said city shelters will remain open through the new year. At the shelter where West went to get warm, American Legion Hall Post 160, there was room for about a dozen people.