The TVDSB and LDCSB both say all of their schools and offices will stay closed today because of the weather. Earlier, all school transportation in London, Middlesex, Elgin and Oxford was cancelled.
Western University and Fanshawe College say all London classes will go ahead but classes are cancelled at Fanshawe's St. Thomas, Woodstock, Simcoe and Clinton campuses. The LTC advises its buses set out on time but there may be some delays because of the snow.
Environment Canada advises putting off any non-essential travel on Monday morning. In addition to falling snow, gusty northeast winds to 60 km/hr are causing blowing and drifting, reducing visibility for driving.
The weather office says London has received about 20 cm of snow so far, however drifts are higher.
Meantime today, February 2, is Groundhog Day. Wiarton Willie has been feasting on apple cores and raw cauliflower ahead of his big moment. Last year, Willie spotted his shadow and correctly predicted six more weeks of winter. Neither Shubenacadie Sam nor the lesser-known Winnipeg Willow saw their shadows, thereby forecasting an early spring. They were wrong.
Environment Canada predicts the first few days of February will be extremely frigid due to a cold air mass hovering over the region. Cold air from the eastern Prairies and Nunavut is settling over southwestern Ontario, making it colder than it normally is this time of year. The average high is typically near -3C.
“It looks like a lot more winter still left to go, unfortunately, for the London area. We are looking at temperatures staying somewhat colder than normal for at least the first part of February ,” says Warning Preparedness Meteorologist Geoff Coulson. “At this point, it’s just mostly the cold that we’re going to have to deal with.”
Coulson says there is no major snowfall on the radar for the rest of this month.
Both the Middlesex-London Health Unit and Elgin-St. Thomas Health Unit have issued Cold Weather Alerts, advising you to bundle up to protect yourself from frostbite and hypothermia. The Cold Weather Alerts are expected to be lifted by Tuesday afternoon.
*with files from Ashton Patis
