Warning in effect for storm that could bring dump of snow to western Manitoba

A winter storm warning is in effect ahead of a weather system that's expected to bring heavy snow to parts of western Manitoba through Sunday, Environment Canada says.

The Colorado low moving through the Dakotas in the United States will spread a band of mixed precipitation through the affected areas Saturday morning.

While it might begin as rain, wet snow or even freezing rain, that precipitation will turn to heavy snow later Saturday, the weather agency said in an alert.

The heavy snow will continue through the night and taper off through the day on Sunday, while northerly winds will gust to 80 km/h.

Total snowfall amounts will generally be between 20 and 40 centimetres, though over higher terrain snowfall may exceed 50 centimetres.

The affected areas are:

• Virden-Souris.
• Dauphin-Russell-Roblin-Winnipegosis.
• Minnedosa-Riding Mountain National Park.
• Ste. Rose-McCreary-Alonsa-Gladstone.

The weather alert urged people in thoseareas to consider postponing non-essential travel until conditions improve, and to prepare for quickly changing and deteriorating travel conditions.

More details about weather alerts in Manitoba are available on Environment Canada's website.

The weather agency issues winter storm warnings which are not necessarily restricted to the winter season whensevere and potentially dangerousconditions are expected, such as amajor snowfall (25 centimetres or more within a 24-hour period).

Snowfall warning in other regions

There's also a snowfall warning in place for part of northern Manitoba, where between 20 and 25 centimetres are expected to fall.

Later Saturday morning, Environment Canada said rain in the eveningin the Island Lake-Oxford House-Gods Lake area is expected to switch to snow overnight at Island Lake.

That snow will be heaviest overnight Saturday and Sunday morning, with lingering light snow ending by Monday morning.

Northerly winds in that area will gust to 60 km/h Sunday and may result in periods of reduced visibility in snow and blowing snow, the weather agency said.

People in those regions should be prepared for power outages, as well as quickly changing and deteriorating travel conditions, Environment Canada warns.

Manitoba Hydro said it opened an emergency operations centre in Brandon, Man., to co-ordinate its response as weather conditions deteriorate.

As of 10:45p.m. Saturday, there were 133outages affecting 7,360customers.

The biggest outages are just south of Winnipeg, and in the areas of Turtle Mountain Provincial Park and Riding Mountain National Park.

Snow is also expected to fall in several other parts of southern Manitoba though not quite as much.

A snowfall warning states that those regions are expected to get between 10 and 20 centimetres, when rain switches over to snow Saturday night.

The affected areas are:

• Arborg-Hecla-Fisher River-Gypsumville-Ashern.
• Berens River-Little Grand Rapids-Bloodvein-Atikaki.
• Poplar River.
• Grand Rapids-Waterhen.

The snow in those regions will be heaviest overnight Saturday and into Sunday morning, with lingering light snow ending by Monday morning, Environment Canada said in its weather alert.

That alert also urged people in those areas to prepare for quickly changing and deteriorating travel conditions.