Arctic air blasts Manitoba, could bring coldest Christmas since 1996 to Winnipeg

The forecasts are inand it looks like Winnipeg is heading for its coldest Christmas in 20 yearsand conditionsdon't look particularly warm for the rest of Manitoba either.

A blast of Arctic air sweeping through the Prairies forced Environment Canada to issue a special weather statement Thursday afternoon.

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The national weather service said highs between 10 C and 16C are expected Friday across southern Saskatchewan and Manitoba, but temperatures will sink to around 28 C in the northern reaches of each province.

Things could then get really coldthrough next week, with forecastovernight lows colder than30 C and daytime highs in the20s.

With the windchill it could feel like35 to40in southern Manitoba or40 to 50 in the north next week, Environment Canada said.

Coldest Christmas since '96

CBC meteorologist John Sauder said this Dec. 25 in Winnipeg is projected to be the coldest since 1996, although the forecast suggests the citywon't get a colder Christmas than itdid that chilly year. Winnipeggers woke up to a morning temperature of 34.6 C onDec. 25, 1996, with a daytime high of 28.5 C.

This year's Christmas isn't expected to get quite that brisk, but Sauder is forecasting a cold snap starting on Christmas Eve, with a low of 27 C and a high of 22 C.

On the big day, Sauder says you can expect a low of 29 C and a high of 24 C.

The chilly weather is forecast to continue after Christmas, with a Boxing Day low of 30 C and high of 24 C.

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"Beyond that, we still have 30 lows and highs that struggle to get warmer than 23 for Wednesday and Thursday next week," Sauder said.

He said he's not expecting snow over the next week, but low temperatures will probably persist all the way up to New Year's Eve.

Extreme cold warnings on horizon

The wind chills areexpected to drop low enough to bring in extreme cold warnings from Environment Canada, Sauder added.

In northern Manitoba, extreme cold warnings are called at 45, a wind chill factor that bringsa freeze time for exposed skin of roughly five minutes,he said.

In the south, the warnings are called when it's 40or colder, bringing a 10-minute freeze time for exposed skin.

Sauder expected the extreme cold warnings to be issued for the north by Saturday, and for the south by Christmas Eve.