Do you dream of White Christmas in Windsor? Maybe, maybe not

Windsor, Ontario –

At this point, there is a 50 to 50 chance of a White Christmas in Windsor-Essex this year, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada officials.

Warning readiness meteorologist Peter Kimbell says it’s too early to say for sure, noting that a significant record for warm temperatures was set in the city last Saturday.

“Climatologically, there is a 50-50 chance,” says Kimbell. “We know this week is going to be warm, so there will be no snow this week, but after Friday night, all bets are off.”

Kimbell says it reached 15.5 ° C in Windsor on Saturday, breaking the 72-year record of 15 ° C set in 1949.

He points out that this Thursday is another warm day in store that could flirt with records, before things get cold.

“In fact, we reached almost 20 degrees in Windsor in December,” explains Kimbell. “We can certainly snow on Christmas Eve or maybe the 23rd or even Christmas Day and we will have a white Christmas, but that kind of level of predictability doesn’t exist yet.”

Kimbell says Environment Canada’s weather models still can’t predict with certainty the last days leading up to Christmas.

“Our forecasts continue to improve about a day every ten years or so, but forecasting what the weather will be ten days from now, 12 days from now is not really good enough yet to be able to tell you if it will snow on Christmas Day,” he says. .

Kimbell adds that Windsor is traditionally one of the warmest places in the province on Dec. 25, suggesting there is a higher chance of snowfall in other parts of southern Ontario.

“My best bet is that for areas like Sarnia, Middlesex County, Huron-Perth, I’d say there is a greater than 50 percent chance,” says Kimbell. “Probably a 70 percent chance of a white Christmas.”