A mix of snow and rain will continue to develop across the Maritimes into Thursday evening. Heavier rain and stronger winds are expected for parts of Nova Scotia.
Weather warnings
The rainfall warning issued for parts of mainland Nova Scotia yesterday is now also in effect for Pictou/Antigonish Counties and Cape Breton.
The warning calls for rain totals of 25 to 50 mm Thursday afternoon through Friday morning for mainland Nova Scotia. Twenty five to 50 mm is possible for Cape Breton Thursday night through Friday afternoon. Snow and ice melt may add to water runoff and create instances of localized flooding.
Southerly wind gusts of 50 to 80 km/h are expected to accompany the rain Thursday evening and night for exposed areas of the Bay of Fundy coastline – New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. Due to the topography of the Highlands, northern Inverness County in Cape Breton will peak with gusts near or in excess of 110 km/h Thursday night. A wind warning has been issued for that area.
Timing of the snow and rain
A round of snow will develop west-to-east across the Maritimes Thursday afternoon into evening. The snow will be turning to rain after a few hours in Nova Scotia and mixing with rain in southern New Brunswick and P.E.I.
Some snow totals of five to 10 centimetres will be possible in New Brunswick and western P.E.I. Eastern P.E.I. and Nova Scotia are expected to receive five centimetres of snow or less before a turn to rain.
Snow will clear New Brunswick by late evening. Rain will be clearing western Nova Scotia by very early Friday morning. The rain will be clearing eastern mainland Nova Scotia and P.E.I. Friday morning and clearing Cape Breton by near noon on Friday.
Temperature tumble into Saturday morning
Milder temperatures are expected in the Maritimes on Friday with daytime highs of 2 to 7 degrees.
Temperatures come down below freezing Friday night into Saturday in a gusty northwest wind. Overnight lows will reach -10 to -18 for New Brunswick, -4 to -11 for Nova Scotia, and -8 to -12 for P.E.I. Any standing wet surfaces could turn icy Friday night into Saturday morning.
Another round of snow and rain will develop across the region on Saturday. Snow totals of five centimetres or less is likely for southern New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and P.E.I. before a turn to five to 10 millimetres of rain. Central and northern areas of New Brunswick will see a possible 10 to 15 centimetre snowfall.
