LETHBRIDGE, AB – Keep those toques and parkas handy. It’s going to get cold and more than likely stay that way right through Christmas.
Arctic air is forecast to flood across the prairies this week and that’s likely going to last for a while.
Environment Canada’s Kyle Fougere says in fact, temperatures are expected to get progressively colder and colder across southern Alberta.
“For the most part, it looks like once this arctic air settles across the province, it tends to stick around,” says Fougere. “So for the rest of the month there isn’t really a strong signal for warmth coming back in. I think that arctic air is something that people are going to have to get used to for the rest of this month.”
The long range forecast is showing daytime highs next week, the week leading up to Christmas to be in the mid-minus teens with some snow and by Christmas Day, the high could drop to -20°C.
That would make it one of the coldest Christmas Days in Lethbridge in a several years.
Although still a week and a half away, there’s also a good chance we will have snow on the ground before December 25th. We’ve only had four White Christmases here in southern Alberta over the last ten years.
Fougere says for the rest of this week it’ll be about 10 or 12 degrees below normal for this time of year and next week could be colder yet. There is also on again, off again flurries expected leading up to Christmas.
