Ottawa could see up to 20 cm of snow today as snowfall warning issued

Snow falling in downtown Ottawa on Wednesday, Dec. 10. (Westin camera)

A winter storm slowed down the commute across Ottawa on Wednesday, with up to 20 centimetres of snow expected by tomorrow morning.

Snow started falling at the Ottawa Airport just after 9 a.m., and the snow is expected to continue overnight .

Environment Canada issued a snowfall warning for the capital, calling for 5 to 10 centimetres of snow today, and another 5 to 10 centimetres of snow this evening.

“An Alberta clipper will continue to bring snow over the area which may be heavy at times. The snow is expected to end from west to east through tonight,” Environment Canada said in a statement.

“Travel will likely be challenging. Roads and walkways will likely be difficult to navigate due to accumulating snow.”

Environment Canada senior climatologist David Phillips says this is a “fast-moving system.”

“It’s going to be snowing all day and all night and probably ease up tomorrow morning,” Phillips told CTV News Ottawa.

“This snow is very light and fluffy. It’s easy to pick it up and redistribute it.”

Phillips says the gusting winds will create “challenging” conditions for driving tonight and on Thursday.

• School buses running in Ottawa on Wednesday, buses cancelled across eastern Ontario

The City of Ottawa said road crews were ready to clear snow from roads and sidewalks once the storm hit.

“As soon as that snow starts falling and we see it sticking on the ground, we’re going to be deploying our resources out on our roadways and sidewalks,” Bryden Denyes, area manager of Ottawa’s core roads, told CTV News Ottawa. “And we’re really going to be focused on our priority road network and our sidewalks, as well as the winter cycling network.”

Denyes says there will be more than 500 pieces of equipment deployed once the snow starts to accumulate.

The snowfall warning stretches from Ottawa to Brockville, Prescott, Cornwall, Morrisburg, Kingston, and Odessa, along with the Ottawa Valley.

Up to 20 centimetres of snow is expected across the region.

• Hourly and 7-day forecast on our CTVNewsOttawa.ca weather hub

Parking ban overnight

The first winter weather parking ban of the season has been issued.

• Dec. 10-11: Ottawa issues overnight parking ban from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.

The City of Ottawa says an overnight parking ban will be in effect from 7 p.m. Wednesday to 7 a.m. on Thursday to assist with snow-clearing operations.

A winter weather parking ban is issued where seven centimetres of snow or more is in the forecast.

Only vehicles with on-street parking permits are allowed to park on Ottawa streets during a winter weather parking ban. During winter weather parking bans, residents will have access to select OC Transpo park and rides as well as certain recreation centres.

Bylaw Services officers issued 16,053 tickets to vehicles parking on city streets during the three winter weather parking bans during the winter of 2024-25.

• When does the City of Ottawa issue winter weather parking bans?

Serious crash on Snake Island Road

Emergency crews responded to several crashes on roads across Ottawa during the storm.

An elderly man was treated for serious injuries following a single vehicle crash on Snake Island Road, near Bank Street.

The Ottawa Fire Services said the vehicle left the roadway and crashed into the ditch.

“The sole occupant, the driver, was trapped inside with multiple injuries,” Nick DeFazio, Ottawa Fire Services Public Information Officer, said in a statement.

“The vehicle sustained substantial front-end damage and crews immediately began stabilizing it to begin the extrication process.”

Firefighters used specialized tools to remove the doors of the vehicle and extricate the driver.

White Christmas ‘almost a done deal’

“For those people who hope and dream and beg and pray for a white Christmas, this will certainly be one,” Phillips said.

“I just don’t see no way this snow is going to leave you before January. This is going to be white gold for people who are skiers and snowmobilers and snowboarders. My gosh, I think it’s almost a done deal – a White Christmas in Ottawa.”

Phillips says it’s about a 70 per cent chance of a white Christmas in Ottawa.

“There’s no way the snow is going to leave,” Phillips said of Christmas. “We don’t see any melting temperatures, any rain to take that snow away.”

There was 19 cm of snow on the ground for Christmas 2024, one cm of snow on Christmas 2023 and 43 cm of snow on Dec. 25, 2022.

Ottawa forecast

Snow tonight with local blowing snow overnight. Low -9 C.

Thursday will see flurries continuing. Another 2 to 4 cm of snow is expected. The temperature will be steady near -9 C.

A mix of sun and cloud is expected on Friday. High -6 C.

The outlook for Saturday calls for mainly cloudy, with a 60 per cent chance of flurries. High -5 C.

Sunday will see a mix of sun and cloud with a 40 per cent chance of flurries. High -10 C.

The normal temperatures for this time of year are a high of -3 C and a low of -10 C.