Weather to stay mild into the new year for southern Saskatchewan

As the clock counts down to 2016, temperatures in southern Saskatchewan will be staying where they are.

“You couldn’t have ordered better weather for bringing in the new year,” Environment Canada’s senior climatologist David Phillips told the CJME Morning Show Wednesday.

Phillips says anyone planning to travel in southern Saskatchewan for a new year’s celebration won’t have to worry about the weather. A high-pressure system has settled into the area, which won’t let any inclement weather in.

“We have the lowest temperature come Thursday evening into Friday morning of -10 C … that’s almost tropical for the prairies.”

Dry, sunny weather is expected to continue as 2016 begins, with temperatures seven to 11 degrees warmer than normal.

The Regina area, in particular, has seen very little snow so far this fall and winter. Phillips explained that the area usually sees about 40 centimetres of snow in October, November and December. This year has only seen seven centimetres. However, rainfall amounts in those months are right around what they normally are.

“Even if it is a dry kind of a winter, it’s not game over.”