The Jan. 15 snowstorm that Environment Canada warned about the day before hit Markham far harder than forecast. A volunteer observer in the city measured 45 centimetres, more than double the warning's top estimate of 20, and residents spent much of the week digging out. A second snowfall warning, issued Tuesday, brought more snow on Wednesday in the middle of what forecasters say will be a long stretch of bitter cold.
A storm that outran the forecast
By Thursday morning, Environment Canada had upgraded its yellow warning to orange, with up to 40 centimetres possible in some areas.
CP24 meteorologist Bill Coulter said forecast models missed a secondary low that developed quickly along the tail of a cold front over the southern U.S. Midwest. When that system drew warm, moist air into the arctic air already sitting over southern Ontario, a band of heavy snow set up over the lower Great Lakes and stayed far longer than expected.
The heaviest snow fell north of highways 401 and 407. The Markham reading came from a volunteer observer, according to a summary of Environment Canada and volunteer observations. Toronto Pearson recorded 22 centimetres, the most on any January day there since 2022.
The summary of this event is that areas north of Highway 401 and 407, at least along the GTA, those are the areas that saw the most snow.
— Eric Tomlinson, meteorologist, Environment Canada
Schools closed, city declares weather event
Both York Region school boards closed their schools to students for the day. The York Region District School Board cancelled transportation and closed all schools and board locations to students, and the York Catholic District School Board closed all of its schools, along with the child care programs inside them. All bus and taxi service for both boards was cancelled.
The City of Markham declared a significant weather event after the orange warning was issued. It warned that roads, sidewalks and bike lanes could become hazardous and urged people to avoid unnecessary travel. It also asked residents to keep vehicles off city streets so plows could get through, not to push driveway snow onto the road, and to stay off ponds, stormwater ponds and waterways, where ice is unpredictable.
Crews cleared primary roads first, then secondary roads, then local streets and lanes. By about 2 p.m., the city's plow tracker showed some major roads had been serviced within the previous hour, CP24 reported, while most sidewalks had not yet been cleared. GO Transit reported delays through the morning on several rail lines, including the Stouffville line that serves Markham, along with delays and cancellations on dozens of bus routes.
A second warning and a long freeze
On Tuesday, Jan. 20, Environment Canada issued a yellow snowfall warning for Toronto and southern York Region, including Markham, Vaughan and Richmond Hill. It called for about 10 centimetres on Wednesday from an Alberta clipper, with snow starting during the morning commute and easing later in the day.
Travel will likely be challenging. Roads and walkways will likely be difficult to navigate due to accumulating snow.
— Environment Canada snowfall warning
The snow arrived during a deep cold spell. Wind chills were in the high minus teens early in the week, and forecasters warned they could reach the minus 30s at Pearson overnight on Friday and Saturday. Climatologist David Phillips said temperatures were running about 10 degrees below normal and that he expected around 18 days without a thaw, with no real warm-up until early February.
Residents can follow plow progress on the city's winter maintenance map at markham.ca/Winter.
