Extreme cold grips central Sask., but relief is on the horizon

Extreme cold warnings have descended on much of Saskatchewan, but they are not expected to last long.

Environment Canada said extreme wind chill values near -40 C are expected on Friday for parts of central Saskatchewan.

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The extreme cold warning stretched from the Alberta border to the Manitoba border, and includes Saskatoon, Lloydminster, the Battlefords, Humboldt, Fort Qu’Appelle and Yorkton.

Extreme cold warnings blanketed much of central Saskatchewan on Friday morning. (Environment Canada/Screenshot)

“The coldest air is lying kind of right through central Saskatchewan, from Saskatoon southeast towards Yorkton,” said meteorologist Chris Stammers.

The warning wraps around Regina the city had not reached the threshold for an extreme cold warning as of 7:45 a.m. on Friday.

But, Stammers said, the Queen City will be close to reaching the -40 C wind chill threshold for an extreme cold warning on Friday night.

“We are forecasting wind chills at -38 C tonight, so when you get down into the -30 C air temperatures, it doesn’t take too much. Just a little bit of wind, like up to 15 kilometers, will push you into the -40 C.”

Stammers said the good news is the fact this cold snap won’t stick around for too long, as temperatures are set to rise over the weekend.

“There is going to be some increasing cloud tonight into the weekend, and so the weekend will bring a bit of a warming trend, but not warm by any stretch,” he said.

“We’re looking at highs in the mid to low teens on the weekend and wind chills kind of look to be in the -30 C to -35 C mark, so a little bit warmer than what we’re seeing today.”

The meteorologist said to expect another cold night on Friday before things start to warm up.

By Tuesday, Stammers said it looks like daytime highs will reach single digits below zero.

The latest information on Environment Canada’s alerts can be found on the weather service’s website.