[h=2]Blizzard, Damaging Winds to Affect Millions Starting Late Sunday
[h=6]By
Brian Edwards, Meteorologist [h=5]February 02, 2013; 11:05 AM
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For more information on the Atlantic Canada blizzard, please click on our World Weather video.
The
clipper system bringing light snow to parts of the eastern United States will move off the coast tonight before lifting northward into Atlanta Canada by Sunday night.
As this system emerges into the Atlantic Ocean, it will rapidly strengthen while taking a northward turn into the Canadian Maritimes.
This rapid strengthening will lead to the development of an all-out blizzard from Labrador through eastern Quebec into New Brunswick and parts of Nova Scotia.
Snow will intensify across parts of this region on Sunday night, producing snowfall rates of up to 2-3 inches (5-8 cm) per hour from Charlottetown, P.E.I., to Gaspe through Goose Bay, Newfoundland.
Heavy snow will expand northward on Monday with the heaviest snow turning to a zone from eastern New Brunswick through the Gaspe Peninsula into much of Labrador.
Snow totals through Monday evening are expected to approach 12 inches (30 cm) from northeastern New Brunswick through the Gaspe Peninsula into much of Labrador and a large part of eastern Quebec. Local amounts to 24 inches (60 cm) are possible, mainly across a zone from west-central Labrador through the eastern tip of the Gaspe Peninsula.
Not only will the snow cause significant travel problems, but dangerous winds will lead to power outages and tree damage.
During the peak of the snow late Sunday night into Monday, winds will gust to between 30-40 mph (50-65 kph) across most of the inland locations.
Meanwhile, wind gusts could approach 60 mph (97 kph) along the immediate coast of Labrador. Gusts of 50 mph (80 kph) are possible along the immediate coast of Newfoundland.
Significant blowing and drifting snow is likely across the eastern portion of Quebec into Labrador and parts of New Brunswick. Visibilities late Sunday night into Monday could fall to below 0.25 of a mile (0.4 of a km) during the height of the storm.
A surge of milder air from the Atlantic will cause the precipitation to changeover to plain rain across coastal sections of Newfoundland on Monday.
Some rain could even mix with the snow across coastal Nova Scotia, including in the city of Halifax on Sunday night as the storm lifts right over top of the area.
Stay tuned to AccuWeather.com over the next day or two as we bring you the latest on the impending blizzard.
Also, check out our
AccuWeather.com Canadian Weather Center.