A winter storm of a "
rare
" intensity for April hit central Canada this week, with heavy snowfall leading to numerous road and school closures.
"
Having an event that gives 30 cm of snow or more after April 11 is rather rare
," said Natalie Hasell, meteorologist at Environment Canada, to AFP.
Read alsoA “historic” snowstorm paralyzes the northeastern United States
After this date, only two storms of this intensity have been recorded since 1902. Such forecasts for the province of Manitoba (central) had not been recorded since "
the storm of the century
" in 1997. The meteorological services had warned that they expected this winter storm to be “
historic
”.
Southeast Saskatchewan (West) and much of southern Manitoba are forecast to have received a deep snowfall ranging from 30 to 50 cm by the end of this storm.
Up to 80 cm of snow
Specialists also expected some areas to receive up to 80 cm of snow.
But ultimately, "
it doesn't look like those areas have received that much precipitation
," Natalie Hasell said, "
the amounts have since been a little tempered
."
However, it is "
very likely
" that the forecasts of 30 to 50 cm will be reached, added this expert.
Thursday, 5 to 10 cm of additional snow was expected in the region of Winnipeg, the capital of Manitoba.
Many schools and roads in the province remained closed.
Power outages were marginal at the Manitoba Hydro site.
Air Canada airline told AFP it plans to resume operations on Thursday, with 14 scheduled flights to and from Winnipeg, after canceling 21 on Wednesday.
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The alerts have been lifted for Saskatchewan, a province which must however be disheveled by gusts of up to 50 km / h.
Others, on the other hand, were issued for northern Ontario, with the storm now moving towards the east of the country.
The meteorological event should fade from Friday and end at the end of the day or in the evening.
