Extreme cold returns to Saskatchewan

It felt like Mother Nature tossed parts of Saskatchewan into the deep freezer Thursday morning.

Environment Canada had extreme cold warnings in place for much of the province including Regina and Saskatoon.

Temperatures were expected to be below -30 C during the morning with windchills below -40 C.

“Bare skin can freeze in just a few minutes, there is that risk of frostbite so you want to make sure you cover up and dress in layers, and if you have any pets outside you want to bring them in and minimize their time outside as much as possible,” said Environment Canada’s Kyle McAulay.

McAulay said the frigid conditions aren’t expected to last though, with temperatures expected to be closer to normal as it gets later in the day. The normal high for this time of the year is -10 C with a low of -19 C.

“There’s a ridge of high-pressure coming down from the Arctic and it’s moving out of the area pretty quickly now, and that will be bringing higher temperatures to Saskatchewan.”

McAulay said there is an Alberta clipper making its way to Saskatchewan, which could be bringing along snow and even the possibility of freezing rain and ice pellets.

“There’s also some uncertainty with this system, so keep an eye out on the forecast and keep checking every so often.”

Most school buses running as normal

As of 7 a.m. Thursday morning, most school bus routes in and around Regina and Moose Jaw were running as normal.

All bus services for the Holy Trinity School Division (Moose Jaw) and Regina Catholic Schools were running as normal; Moose’s public school division, Prairie South, had all bus routes running except for Avonlea 4 and Rouleau 1 and 2. Regina’s public schools cancelled its wheel-chair accessible routes, but all others were running as normal.

The Prairie Valley School Division had all of its routes running as normal.

It’s a little ‘fresh’ out here

The cold doesn’t bother Dave Gartner who was out for a stroll around Regina’s Wascana Lake on Thursday morning.

“Lots of room on the trail today,” he said.

There weren’t many people like him out for a walk with wind chills approaching -40 C. While some would call it extremely cold, Gartner was more optimistic, calling the weather “super fresh.”

To stay warm, he was decked out in layers, wearing long johns under a good pair of pants plus a 40-year-old down-filled parka and a toque.

Gartner walks every day. He said Thursday was the coldest day yet, but he hasn’t missed a day this winter.