While winter has been mild in Airdrie and much of the surrounding areas thus far, frigid temperatures are predicted to hit in the next several days.
According to Environment and Climate Change Canada, temperatures can fluctuate as much as 20 degrees between Friday and Sunday night. The forecast is predicting nighttime lows between -14 degrees Celsius and -22 degrees Celsius over the coming days, while daytime highs will be between -2 and -22 degrees. The drastic drop in temperatures will also be accompanied by snowfall.
And although the temperature plunge may seem drastic, Airdrie is not set to break any cold temperature records just yet. Some of the coldest temperatures that broke records in previous years were in 2022. Between January 4 and 7 2022, temperatures hovered near -30 degrees.
Due to the above-average temperatures in the past several weeks, there has been a delay in The City of Airdrie's outdoor rinks being opened. According to the City, outdoor rinks are flooded once the temperature drops to and maintains a constant -10 degrees Celsius for a minimum of one week.
"During winter months, natural surfaces will be plowed only when they measure between 10 to 12 inches," The City stated.
As of Tuesday, January 2, the measurements of several outdoor rinks in Airdrie were listed as:
- Nose Creek Pond: 7.5 inches
- Summerhill: 9.25 inches
- Waterstone: 9 inches
Snowbank rinks in Airdrie include:
- Bayview Way Park (Tennis courts at Bayview Way/Bayview Street)
- Fletcher Regional Park
- Plainsmen Arena/Jensen Park
- Ravenswood (green space at Ravensmoor CM and Ravensmoor Way)
- Town and Country Centre
- Windsong (Green space near Windstone Ave)
These rinks are designed for passive skating. Sticks, balls and pucks are discouraged on snowbank rinks.
Boarded rinks include:
- Bayside Drive
- Big Springs Crescent green space
- Chinook Winds Regional Park
- East Lake Regional Park
- Kings Heights Drive
- Monklands Regional Park
Other neighbouring communities that have also delayed the opening of their outdoor rinks include Crossfield.
"At long last, we are experiencing some typical winter temperatures which have allowed flooding at the Amery Park ODR to begin. We know the community is excited to get out and skate, but we do ask everyone to stay off the surface until the ice is built. It takes dozens of floods over several days, weather permitting, for the ice to be in skating condition," The Town of Crossfield stated on its social media earlier this week.
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Fri, Jul 26, 6:00 PM
Full-time, Permanent, Labour