Winter weather to make appearance as snow set to fall in southern Ontario Wednesday

Wintery weather will be making one final return across southern Ontario on Wednesday.

A cold front moved through late Monday, ushering in much chillier air. This is setting the stage for the snow that will begin late Tuesday evening in the Greater Toronto Area but even earlier across southwest Ontario.

It will likely start as a period of light rain before transitioning.

The snow will continue through the morning hours on Wednesday with amounts generally under five centimetres except for a small swath near Lake Ontario especially back towards Burlington and Hamilton where 10 centimetres is likely.

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Ten to 15 centimetre amounts are likely around the Niagara Region and across eastern Ontario where the snow will continue all day Wednesday.

The last time a centimetre of snow fell in Toronto was two months ago in late February, so drivers will likely need to once again adapt to winter driving.

The good news is that the ground is warmer now than in winter and most of the snow will melt on the major roadways. Grassy surfaces is where the snow will be most noticeable around the GTA.

It has been a very mild spring so far across the province so many trees are in bloom and some have even leafed. This combined with the late season snow could cause limbs to come down and sporadic power outages to occur. This is most likely where snow amounts top 10 centimetres.

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The temperature will warm above freezing Wednesday afternoon which will melt snow but a hard freeze is also likely overnight into Thursday morning.

Gardiners are encouraged to cover their early plantings or bring inside any sensitive plants.

A more significant return to mild weather is expected by the end of the week with Toronto seeing a high of 11 C on Saturday, along with Hamilton which will see 10 C and Barrie with 12 C.