Snow totals of 20 to near 50 cm reported in N.S. from Tuesday storm

Corrine Penney gets set to shovel snow early Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2023 in Sydney, N.S. Winter storm warnings remain in effect for parts of Nova Scotia and much of Newfoundland and Labrador as a large snowstorm continues to trudge across Atlantic Canada. (Source: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Steve Wadden)

Initial snow reports from Environment Canada-monitored weather stations and volunteers from the CoCoRaHS network show the heaviest snow from the passing storm fell towards Atlantic coastal Nova Scotia.

A widespread 20 to just over 30 centimetres reported from Tusket all the way up through Halifax and to Sydney. The highest snow report so far was from a volunteer at Spanish Ship Bay with 52 centimetres of snow. The snow was of the “fluffy” variety with a snow ratio of about 15:1. That means every 15 millimetre of snow melts down to about 1 millimetre of liquid. A “standard” snow has a ratio of about 10:1, a heavy wet snow a ration of 8:1 or lower.

Preliminary snow reports from weather stations and the network of volunteers at CoCoRaHS. (Source: CTV News Atlantic)

Intense snowfall rates

A significant contributor to the high snow totals was a narrow but intense band that moved in off the Atlantic. While only about 10-to-20 kilometres across, it was able to produce snowfall rates of three-to-five centimetres for at least a couple of hours for those areas that picked up the most snow.

The narrow but intense band of snow that setup over the Atlantic coastal communities of Nova Scotia Tuesday evening. (Source: CTV News Atlantic)

That narrow band of intense snow first arrived on the South Shore and into the Halifax area Tuesday evening.

The band then pulled east of those areas but continued across the Eastern Shore and Richmond/Cape Breton Counties. The band finally clearing Cape Breton by near 7 a.m. Wednesday morning.

The same band of intense snow stretched across the Eastern Shore and into Cape Breton. (Source: CTV News Atlantic)

Snow squalls follow

The storm has moved on to impact eastern Newfoundland squarely on Wednesday. Much of the eastern portion of that province is under a Winter Storm Warning with some areas expected to pick up 60 centimetres or more of snow. That part of Atlantic Canada is also catching the strongest winds from the storm with some peak winds reported in excess of 90 km/h.

Flurries and snow squalls brought in by a cold and gusty northwest wind will provide further localized snow accumulation Wednesday night into Thursday morning. (Source: CTV News Atlantic)

A cold and gusty northwest wind has set up for the Maritimes in the wake of the storm. As that northwest wind blows over the Bay of Fundy, Northumberland Strait, and Gulf of St. Lawrence, it is expected to bring flurries and snow squalls onshore.

The snow squalls will intensify Wednesday evening and night. They pose the most risk for eastern Prince Edward Island as well as Pictou, Antigonish, Inverness, and Victoria counties in eastern Nova Scotia. Some of the squalls for those areas could produce localized amounts of five-to-15 centimetres. More than 30 centimetres are possible in the higher terrain of the Cape Breton Highlands. Flurries in other parts of the Maritimes are generally expected to total one-to-five centimetres.

The flurries and snow squalls are expected to diminish and end by and through Thursday morning. The gusty northwest wind will ease Thursday evening and night.