The brunt of a multi-day winter storm was set to hit central Ontario's snowbelt on Thursday with squalls expected to extend power outages and disrupt travel across large parts of the province.
Up to 50 centimetres of snow was possible for areas off Georgian Bay, including Barrie, and even more for the region south of Owen Sound, Environment Canada said.
The heaviest snowfall was expected to start Thursday night with the storm lingering into Saturday.
Environment Canada meteorologist Steven Flisfeder warned that snow squalls can result in poor visibility for drivers. Even if someone is driving from a relatively snow-free area, they can quickly find themselves in dangerous conditions, he said.
"When you add in the winds, that adds to visibility reductions with any blowing snow as well," he added.
Toronto was expected to be mostly spared, but the forecast said Hamilton and the outskirts of the Greater Toronto Area, from Milton wrapping around to Oshawa, could see between five and 15 centimetres and strong winds.
The London area could see totals exceeding 15 centimetres, Environment Canada said.
Flisfeder said the mix of heavy snowfall and wind gusts can bring down small tree limbs onto power lines.
Thousands of customers were without power on Thursday afternoon, according to Hydro One.
The utility said on its website that crews were responding to outages "as quickly and safely as possible," but it reported local road conditions in some areas had delayed its crews.
Hydro One spokesperson Tiziana Baccega Rosa said anyone who is affected by an outage and assessing damage around their home should be careful and aware of their surroundings.
It is best practice to stay at least ten metres away from any downline and report it to Hydro One or a local utility, she said.
Baccega Rosa said given that the severe weather may continue for a few more days, people are encouraged to have an emergency preparedness kit ready. This includes items like water, non-perishable food items, batteries and portable chargers and flashlights.
"There's still an opportunity to gather those items so that if an outage were to occur, you have what you need on hand to shelter in place," she said.
Further east off Lake Ontario, wind gusts were expected to top out around 70 or 80 kilometres an hour, and possibly higher in Prince Edward County.
The forecast suggested winds were expected to let up in those areas later Thursday.
Major snowfall had already buried parts of northern Ontario, blanketing roads and shutting down a stretch of Highway 655 south of Cochrane.
Another 10 to 20 centimetres was possible on Thursday to bring totals up to an expected 60 centimetres in parts of northeastern Ontario.
A winter storm warning remained in place from Wawa to Timmins, and as far north as Moosonee.
It was expected to ease up Thursday night near Lake Superior, but continue into Friday morning for areas closer to the Quebec border.
It is "on the rarer side" for an event like this to happen so early in the year in southern Ontario, Flisfeder said.
But it is not unheard of, he said, noting a similar storm around this time last year covered parts of eastern Georgian Bay through Gravenhurst and Bracebridge with over a hundred centimeters of snow in a few days.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2025.
