First snowfall event of the season to hit south, central Sask. this week

After several weeks of above-seasonal temperatures and dry conditions, south and central Saskatchewan will get their first snowfall event of the season this week. 

A system moving in from Alberta is expected to spread snow across much of the region beginning around the supper hour Monday, before moving out Tuesday afternoon.

The heaviest snow is expected in southwestern and west-central Saskatchewan, including Swift Current, Leader, Kindersley and Outlook. A snowfall warning was issued for those communities Monday.

Between 10 and 15 centimetres of snow could fall by Tuesday morning.

The rest of south and central Saskatchewan will generally see between two to five centimetres by Tuesday morning.

Environment Canada meteorologist Terri Lang said accumulations are hard to judge because the ground is still fairly warm, causing some snow to melt.

"Farther to the south, closer to the U.S. border, the snow will be mixed with rain and, again, the ground is warmer," said Lang. "[It's] harder to get the accumulations down for that."

Environment Canada is also warning of snowfall rates between two and three centimetres per hour. That — along with winds gusting upwards of 50 kilometres per hour — could create poor visibility and drifting snow on roads for the Tuesday morning commute.

The Highway 11 corridor between Regina and Saskatoon will likely be affected, even though both cities will probably be spared the highest amounts of snow.

Colder temperatures, due to an area of high pressure moving in, will likely cause snow to stick, especially where there's higher snowfall amounts in western Saskatchewan.

A low-pressure system in the U.S. could bring another round of snow mixed with rain to south-central and southeastern Saskatchewan Wednesday and Thursday.

Accumulation types and amounts are still unknown, especially since the system could be pushed further south by the developing area of high pressure.

Below-freezing daytime highs are then expected to stick around for the rest of this week and into next, in almost all of the province, just in time for Halloween.

Overnight lows could drop into the mid-minus teens in southern Saskatchewan by the middle of this week, as highs struggle to get above –10 C.