How much snow fell in the southeast and is it here to stay?

Southern Manitoba is digging out after the first snowfall of the season. 

Meteorologist Scott Kehler with Weatherlogics says on average about 15 centimetres of snow fell this week in southern Manitoba. He notes we could see a few more flurries on Friday, but not enough to add much more to the total snowfall. 

According to Kehler, the systems played out almost exactly as expected. He notes the first round of snow was on the lighter side and because it was so warm, a lot of it melted either as it fell or later in the day as the temperature rose.

But the second snowfall happened mainly from Thursday night into Friday morning. Kehler explains that because it happened when it was dark, it allowed the snow to stick more easily. And, because of the cooler weather, there were higher amounts of precipitation. 

"Overall, I would say it wasn't much of a surprise how it played out," adds Kehler. "But it is always, unless you are a snow lover, a bit unfortunate to see such heavy snow in October."

Kehler says because of how wet this snow was, it is an easy calculation to convert the depth of snow to a water equivalent. He notes the 15 centimetres of snow is similar to a 15 millimetre rain event in summer. 

Meanwhile, Kehler says snow at this time of year is always a mixed bag for farmers. He notes for those still trying to take their crop off the land, this precipitation will slow their progress. But, for those farmers who have finished their harvest, Kehler says this precipitation will help get the soil moisture ready for next year. 

"Many farmers, particularly in areas that had sandier soils struggled with soil moisture this year because there wasn't a lot of rainfall at times through the summer months," he points out. "So, any precipitation this winter will be welcome for them."

Based on the forecast, Kehler says the ground will likely stay white for a little while now. He notes there is enough of a snow base that it will not melt quickly and says with the temperature not expected to climb above the freezing mark for at least the next week, the snow will not be leaving any time soon. 

"I don't think that this entire snowpack is going to last until spring," he says. "But it will be slow to melt and if we do get additional snow on top of it, it could take a while for us to see a real reduction in the depth."

Kehler says there are no big storms in the forecast for the next week. However, he says we could get the occasional weak low-pressure system moving through which might drop a few more centimetres of snow here or there. 

In response to Canada's Online News Act and Meta (Facebook and Instagram) removing access to local news from their platforms, SteinbachOnline encourages you to get your news directly from your trusted source by bookmarking this page and downloading the SteinbachOnline app.