Edmonton weather: Freezing rain risk tonight, warm and gusty Saturday

According to Cory Edel's forecast, the weekend will be warm but there's a chance of showers Friday night.

A freezing rain warning is in effect for the Peace Country and we’ll probably see that warning zone expanded to the east and southeast through the day.

We have an area of low pressure moving in from B.C. bringing showers and freezing rain to northwestern Alberta this morning and midday. Further north, several centimetres of snow is possible around High Level and then north of Fort McMurray tonight.

That low-pressure system will push the precipitation through the Edmonton/Red Deer areas tonight. Temperatures will hover around the freezing mark throughout the evening and overnight.

So, we won’t see a flash freeze during or following the showers. But, watch for slick roads and sidewalks.

If you’re planning to be on highways north or east of Edmonton early Saturday, check roads conditions before you head out.

Areas north of Edmonton and parts of east-central Alberta have a high probability of freezing rain tonight.

All of the precipitation should move out of the province by early Saturday morning and we’ll get some gusty wind behind that system.

Gusts in the Edmonton region should be 30-40 km/h, but eastern Alberta could get gusts in the 50-70 km/h range.

We’re also eyeballing a chance of snow for Sunday night. A low-pressure system will develop over southern Alberta late Sunday and we’ll have an area of snow just north of that system.

There’s not a lot of confidence in the location or intensity of that snow, so we’ll have to watch to see how that develops.

Temperature wise: The warm spell continues. Average daytime highs for late January/early February are in the -4 C to -5 C range.

We’ll get daytime highs in the 2 to 5 C range for most of the next seven to 10 days. There are few days that could be slightly warmer, especially Wednesday of next week.

Here’s the forecast for Edmonton and area:

Today - Mostly cloudy.

High: 3

Tonight - 70% chance of showers, risk of freezing rain.

9pm: 0

Saturday - Morning clouds, then Partly cloudy. Gusty.

Wind: WNW 15-20 gusting to 30-40 km/h.

Morning: 2

Afternoon High: 5

Sunday - Mostly cloudy. 40% chance of evening snow.

Morning Low: -6

Afternoon High: 2

Monday - Morning clouds. Clearing in the afternoon.

Morning Low: -4

Afternoon High: 4

Tuesday - Partly cloudy.

Morning Low: -7

Afternoon High: 4

Wednesday - Mostly cloudy.

Morning Low: -3

Afternoon High: 7