Soaring temperatures in Ottawa to be quickly followed by freezing cold

February 27, 2024 Canuck

It’s unseasonably warm in Ottawa, but Environment Canada is warning about a potential flash freeze just days from now.

Environment Canada’s forecast called for a high of 16 C today, which would have broken the record for the warmest Feb. 27 in Ottawa history. The current record is 12.4 C, set back in 2000. So far, however, the temperature has only reached a high of 11.5 C at 2 p.m.

The temperature at 4 p.m. was 10.3 C.

Despite the unusually high temperatures, a flash freeze warning has been issued, with Environment Canada saying rapidly falling temperatures Wednesday night could cause wet surfaces to freeze.

“A dramatic change in temperatures is expected on Wednesday with the passage of a sharp cold front. Temperatures are expected to go from well above freezing to below freezing in just a matter of a few hours,” the weather agency said.

The forecast for Wednesday night includes a low of -13 C, after a daytime high of 14 C, a 27-degree swing.

Two days of warm weather before temperatures plummet

This could be the warmest February day in Ottawa history, as spring-like temperatures arrive in the national capital region for the final days of February.

“Typically, this is more like March than February so I’m a little surprised it has come so early,” David Phillips, Environment Canada senior climatologist, told CTV Morning Live on Tuesday. “My Gosh, our weather has got so weird, wild and wacky in recent years that nothing really surprises me.”

According to the social media account @YOW_Weather, a high of 16 C would be the warmest temperature ever recorded in Ottawa on a February day. The current high is 12.4 C, set on Feb. 27, 2000.

Wednesday’s high of 1 C would set a record for the warmest Feb. 28 in Ottawa history. The current record is 9.9 C, set back in 2018.

“You’re losing your reputation as one of the snowiest and one of the coldest national capitals in the world,” Phillips told Newstalk 580 CFRA’s Ottawa at Work with guest host Graham Richardson on Monday.

Phillips said the rapid swing in temperatures is unusual.

“It really is kind of bizarre, but this is what the weather has been this past winter particularly in the Ottawa area,” he said Tuesday.

Warm temperatures will return for the first weekend of March, with highs of 4 C on Friday, 7 C on Saturday and 9 C on Sunday.