Colder winter with ‘fair amount of snow’ on the way for Winnipeg: meteorologist

Winnipeggers should brace for a snowy winter – but not as bad as last year.

That’s according to Weatherlogics chief scientist Scott Kehler, who says this year’s winter will not be as snowy as the last one. But it could be colder.

Kehler says a rare “triple-dip” La Nina could be on the way.

“Last year’s La Nina brought a cold and very snowy winter,” said Kehler. “This winter coming up, while it may not be as bad as last winter, there is a good chance of a colder winter with a fair amount of snow, but probably not as much as last winter.”

Kehler says last year’s winter was nearly record breaking.

“It was one of the snowiest winters ever with over 200 cm of snow. The record had 250, so we weren’t too far from the all-time record.”

A snowy day in Winnipeg. (Credit: CityNews)

“Triple-dip” La Nina

If La Nina lasts through the end of this year, the “triple dip” would be the first this century – caused by three straight years of its effect on climate patterns like drought and flooding worldwide.

The World Meteorological Organization said La Nina conditions have strengthened in the eastern and central equatorial Pacific with an increase in trade winds in recent weeks.

READ: As extreme weather season ends, only 4 confirmed tornadoes in Manitoba this summer

Those conditions involve a large-scale cooling of ocean surface temperatures.

La Nina is a natural and cyclical cooling of parts of the equatorial Pacific that changes weather patterns worldwide.

Rainy year does not mean snow

Kehler says despite Winnipeg nearing the record for wettest year ever, weather from season to season is often not correlated. So Winnipeg shouldn’t use the rain seen so far this year as a representation of this coming winter.

As for temperature, it could be another cold one.

“Predicting the exact temperature is very difficult, but from what we see now it will be a slightly colder winter than last year, maybe a few more warm periods throughout, but not nearly as snowy, which will make the winter seem less harsh,” he said.

Kehler says the flooding issues Manitoba saw this spring could be exacerbated with a snowy winter, as the ground has been so saturated this year.

Winnipeg has seen 656 millimetres so far this year. The record is 723 millimetres set in 1962.

—With files from The Associated Press