Calgary the 'hot spot' in Canada this morning with much warmer temperatures

Calgary hit 10 degrees on Friday! Calgary hit 10 degrees on Friday! Jodi Hughes has a look at the five-day forecast from the Sky Watch Weather Centre.

As expected strong westerly winds provided a boost in temperatures overnight across southern Alberta.

As of 7:30 a.m., it was 10 C in Calgary, compared to a normal overnight low of -15 C.

That made Calgary the “hot spot” across Canada,the warmest location in the country so far today.

Sustained winds of 40 km/h were recorded at Calgary International Airport with gusts closer to 60 km/h.

Wind gusts in the southwestern corner of the province were much higher.

According to Environment and Climate Change Canada wind gusts at the Lethbridge airport reached 103 km/h early Friday.

A wind warning issued by ECCC for the southern portion of the province explained “winds will ease later this morning,” but advised motorists, especially those “in high profile vehicles, may expect hazardous driving conditions on highways.”

A snowfall warning was also issued by the national weather agency advising up to 15 cm of snow was expected for higher elevation locations north of the TransCanada Highway in the North Columbia region in B.C.

A moisture-laden low pressure system moving from northern British Columbia through north-central Alberta has already produced freezing rain and as of 8 a.m. Friday including all forms of precipitation ranging from snow to rain. The trailing edge of that same system will introduce rain and then snow into southern Alberta throughout the day, potentially creating rapidly deteriorating road conditions.

The prolific freeze-thaw cycle of late will be amplified in the wake of this low, with enhanced melting freezing on some surfaces like parking lots, sidewalks, and roadways.

Temperatures across southern Alberta will continue to be warmer than average until early next week. In Calgary daytime highs will range from 3 C to 8 C starting on Saturday until Thursday, with overnight lows between -7 C to 1 C.