Peak Winds This Evening, Then More Rain for the Avalon Saturday
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The ocean is angry today, my friends! Like an old man trying to send back soup in a deli, as the great line from Seinfeld goes. Looking at the view from the Post Taphouse in Torbay this afternoon, it’s just that: very angry, and very windy out there.
The area of low pressure south of Newfoundland was once Subtropical Storm Josephine. It isn’t anymore, but it’s still certainly being a pain in the bum. Over the last 24 hours, satellite and radar imagery shows the low moving from near Cape Cod yesterday to well south of Newfoundland today. Around it we’re seeing high winds offshore and on shore, along with areas of rain, some wet snow and even some ice pellets mixing in here and there.
Heading into the 4 o’clock hour, radar was picking up some light snow over parts of central and western Newfoundland. I don’t know how much of that is reaching the ground, but it’s certainly possible. There were also pockets of heavy rain mixed with ice pellets over eastern and northeastern Newfoundland, and the wind is still ramping up.
How windy has it been? 💨
Through 3:30 this afternoon, Sagona Island had the highest wind gust so far today, at 115 km/h. Burgeo, Marticot Island, Grates Cove, Bonavista, St. Alban’s, St. Lawrence, Argentia, St. John’s and Pools Island have all seen winds gusting between 70 and 95 km/h so far today.
As of 4 o’clock, St. John’s was gusting close to 70 km/h, Argentia 65 and St. Lawrence 74, and Sagona Island was gusting to 115 again as of 4:02. Those speeds are still climbing, and the peak winds are going to happen this evening, so keep that in mind.
A Wind Warning remains in effect from Burgeo to the southeastern Avalon for winds gusting as high as 100 km/h, according to Environment Canada. I’ve been saying as high as 110, because I think some areas are going to see gusts over 100 km/h, like we’ve already seen at Sagona Island, though that’s a pretty unique case so far.
When the wind lets up
Looking at the wind gust forecast from tonight through Saturday, by 6 PM we’re looking at gusts of 80 km/h in St. John’s and 100 down in Trepassey. By midnight the wind starts to slack off, which is a good thing, and it eases more by tomorrow morning. Saturday looks breezy, but not nearly as windy as it’s been today.
More rain for the Avalon Saturday 🌧️
Most of tonight’s precipitation should wind down by about midnight. That said, if you’re on the Avalon Peninsula, tomorrow starts dry, but don’t let it fool you. An area of rain works north up the Southern Shore as we move toward lunchtime, with more rain developing during the second half of the day and sticking with us into tomorrow evening. It looks like another 5 to 15 mm is on the way before it ends tomorrow evening and night, setting us up for a very nice Sunday.
Across the eastern half of Newfoundland, tomorrow isn’t going to be so nice either, with clouds, rain showers and breezy conditions, though nowhere near as bad as today.
A nicer Saturday out west ☀️
It’s going to be a cold night, with lows near or below freezing on the island, especially in the west and northwest. But the west and southwest coasts look pretty good for tomorrow under mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies. I think there’s a tournament in the Bay St. George / Stephenville area tomorrow, and the weather should be best kind for that.
ECT 50 race forecast 🏃
Something very cool is happening tomorrow: the East Coast Trail 50, a grueling 50 km race on the East Coast Trail from Pouch Cove to Quidi Vidi Lake. My hat’s off to all the racers taking part! Here’s what to expect along the way:
- Pouch Cove (start): about 6 degrees tomorrow morning.
- Flat Rock (16 km in): 6 degrees, with winds gusting to 62 km/h for both the leaders and the middle of the pack.
- Middle Cove Beach: 5 degrees around 10:39 for the leaders and 12:31 for mid-pack, and not as windy.
- The Marine Lab (second-to-last checkpoint): 5 degrees for both groups, and a little less windy if you’re in the middle of the pack than at the front.
- Quidi Vidi Lake (finish): 4 degrees, with winds gusting to 57 km/h around 12:33 and 53 km/h around 3:33 in the afternoon.
We’ll see some rain showers too, especially closer to lunchtime. If you’re taking part, hats off to you, and dress accordingly!
Labrador
It was a nice day in the Big Land today, and it’s going to be cold tonight, with temperatures near or below freezing. Saturday looks beautiful, with highs of 9 to 11 degrees for most areas. Sunday brings highs of 8 to 11, with some showers and flurries working in from the north and northwest. The weather looks very tranquil over the next few days: a little warmer, then a little cooler, but no rain and no major snow in the forecast, at least for the time being.
Looking ahead
Sunday brings highs of 7 to 12 across Newfoundland. The 7-day forecast for the island shows some warmer temperatures coming in from Monday. It’ll be a little breezy, but overall it warms up after today and tomorrow, and when I looked ahead into next week a little while ago, there were no major weather events in play.
Have a very, very good Friday, folks! I’ll see you over the weekend with an update for sure, just probably not super early Saturday morning.
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Thanks Eddie! A pain in the ‘bum’ fo’sure!
A downright miserable day! Looking forward to see what Sunday brings. Enjoy your weekend
yes ice pellets wet snow rain a a peak at the orange ball in the sky. 4 seasons in one