By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

jack frost returns

Cold weather to park itself over Red Deer this weekend

Sep 26, 2019 | 4:30 PM

It’s about to get cold and snowy in these parts.

Environment Canada has issued both a Special Weather Statement and Frost Advisory for the Red Deer region.

The Special Weather Statement states the following:

“Alberta’s first significant snowfall of the season is expected Friday September 27 through Monday September 30 in the Mountain Parks and Foothills.

Snow is forecast to begin falling in the mountain parks early Friday morning spreading south and eastwards throughout the day. How far east the snow spreads remains uncertain at this time, however the highest accumulations are expected to remain along the foothills and into the mountain parks. Calgary will likely see snowflakes by Friday evening, with accumulations up to 5 cm by Sunday morning.

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As the system moves south, upslope flow will enhance snowfall in the extreme southwest corner of the province and into Montana. Warm surface temperatures will affect snowfall accumulations initially but at this time, daily snowfall totals look to be in the 5-10 cm range for most areas, with the Waterton region in the 15-20 cm range. By Monday, total accumulations of 20-30 cm over areas along the mountains and foothills are expected, with the possibility of seeing near 50 cm in localized areas of extreme southwestern Alberta as well as higher elevations in the mountain parks.

Poor driving conditions throughout the weekend can be expected in southwestern Alberta, including Highway 1 west of Calgary and portions of the QEII.

This is expected to be a long duration event, with snow beginning Friday morning and tapering off by Monday. Temperatures are forecast to rebound into the low-mid teens by mid-week, making this brief brush with winter just that…brief.”

If the snow wasn’t enough, frost is threatening to destroy the garden vegetables you’ve worked all summer for.

Temperatures are expected to dip below zero across central and northern Alberta Thursday night into Friday, leading to widespread frost. Residual rain showers and cloud cover may protect some areas, but Friday should start off cold, the frost advisory says. Plants should be covered up, if at all possible.

Meantime, in southern Alberta, including the city of Calgary and its surrounding areas could see up to 20-30 centimetres by Monday, with areas closer to the Rockies and higher elevations expecting close to 50 centimetres.