Surprise! P.E.I. waking up to white and some power outages

After summery conditions on Saturday it's been winter-like on P.E.I. all week, and Thursday morning some Islanders are being greeted with some significant snowfall as well as some hail.

Just after 7 a.m. Maritime Electric reported more than 2,500 customers without power. Many of those are in Charlottetown, with Bonshaw and Argyle Shore also affected since 3:45 a.m.

Some power was restored in Charlottetown around 9:30 a.m., but the Maritime Electric outage map has not been updated since 9:01 a.m., so the number of current outages is unclear.

The first snow of the season in combination with traffic lights being out in many parts of Charlottetown is causing some chaos on the roads.

There is 5 centimetres of snow down in Charlottetown and the highway camera is showing slushy conditions in New Haven, just west of the capital. There are reports of some vehicles off the road on Route 2 and in the Charlottetown area. Highway cameras in the east and west of the province are showing clear roads.

Hailstones the size of small peas fell in North Rustico.

CBC meteorologist Tina Simpkin said more snow will come to some areas.

"The light snow mixing with rain showers will continue throughout the morning and the winds are going to start to pick up too," said Simpkin.

Temperatures are coldest in the central area of the Island, with O C at Charlottetown Airport at 7 a.m.

Temperatures will rise 5 C this afternoon, and the wind will ease.mid-afternoon.

Drivers should watch out for slushy conditions, and give themselves a little extra time to get where they are going.