More flurries expected as Ontario tries to clean up after major snowstorm

Much of southern Ontario is still cleaning up after a major snowstorm struck on Wednesday afternoon and evening.

Up to 20 centimeters dropped on some regions, including about 14 centimeters on the Greater Toronto Area. Flurries are expected to continue throughout the day on Thursday, with some regions in southern Ontario still experiencing a snowfall warning.

“The bulk of the heavy snow has fallen last night. However, snow will continue this morning before tapering off to flurries this afternoon,” an Environment Canada snowfall warning read.

“There could be a significant impact on rush hour traffic in urban areas early this morning. Allow extra time to reach your destination.”

In Toronto, periods of snow are expected to end early this morning, according to Environment Canada. There is a 40 per cent chance of flurries tonight with a 30 per cent chance the snow continues Friday.

The City of Toronto's director of operations and maintenance Vincent Sferrazza told reporters Thursday morning that clean up will be a ‘multi-day, multi-round event.”

“The cleanup so far has been gone very well,” he said, noting that crews were on the road around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.

“In between three o'clock and four the snow started coming down very heavily. And that point, we started planning for plowing and we started our plowing exercise at approximately, probably five to six o'clock.”

Plowing took place overnight, Sferrazza said, and crews began working on sidewalks Thursday morning.

“Over the next few days, we're going to continue with some salting and spot plowing where there's still a need.”

The majority of school buses running in the GTA have been cancelled Thursday morning; although most schools remain open for in-person learning.

• A full list of school and bus cancellations can be found here.

The storm hit southern Ontario swiftly on Wednesday, resulting in multiple transit delays as well as multiple collisions. According to the Ontario Provincial Police, there were over 300 crashes that occurred in the last 24 hours.

Officials warn that while the major roadways have been salted, driving conditions can still be dangerous.

A six-vehicle pile up on the Highway 401 eastbound ramp to Dixie Road in Mississauga occurred Thursday morning.

“The roads have been salted and they're mostly wet, but that doesn't mean your stopping distances might not be extended because of slippery conditions. We're still dealing with that and we got problems really all across the GTA,” OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said at the scene.

“So please give yourself extra distance behind the vehicle in front of you, give yourself extra time. Stay in control, don't panic. No aggressive steering, no aggressive braking. Please be careful out there.”

WINTER DRIVING CONDITIONS. Please slow down and stay in control. #OnStorm. pic.twitter.com/DfcNQOdvnp

— OPP Highway Safety Division (@OPP_HSD) January 26, 2023

Meanwhile, at Toronto Pearson International Airport, there are at least 70 flight cancellations as of Thursday. An additional 70 flights have been delayed.

Travellers are being urged to check the status of their flights before heading to the airport.

Temperatures in Toronto are expected to hit a high of minus 10 C on Thursday with the wind chill. Winds are gusting between 30 and 50 kilometres an hour.