Dec 12 weather: Freezing winds and blizzards for parts of southern Ontario

You may want to bundle up if you’re headed outside on Thursday with a sub-zero wind chill and snow for Mississauga and Toronto while some parts of southern Ontario could see significant snowfall.

Environment Canada issued blizzard warnings on Wednesday for areas east of Lake Huron saying some 80 cm of snow is possible in coming days with peak snowfall rates of five to 10 cm an hour.

And while the Greater Toronto Area will be spared the massive snowfall there’s still flurries in the forecast along with a wind chill that will make it feel nearly 10 degrees colder on Thursday.

Temperatures will hit a daytime high of around -5 C on Thursday but will feel more like -14 C or -15 C with the wind chill in Mississauga, Brampton, Toronto. The mercury will drop even further in Hamilton with a wind chill of around -18 C.

Winds will be fairly stiff throughout the day starting at around 40 km/h in the morning and gusting up to 70 km/h by the evening.

Areas like Goderich, Stratford, Dufferin County, Kincardine and elsewhere can expect blizzard conditions and snow squalls in the morning, Environment Canada says.

Road closures are likely in areas under a blizzard warning, the weather agency said, with travel expected to be “extremely hazardous.”

Some parts of the province could be in for up to 40 cm of snow by Friday due to lake-effect squalls. The Weather Network says the winter conditions are partially due to a “weather bomb” in the U.S. bringing colder air to Ontario.

– With files from Ryan Rocca