Christmas Eve brings wind warning and rain, but warmer temps

Santa is in for a wild sleigh ride on Wednesday due to a wind warning that covers much of southern Ontario, including Toronto and the GTA.

Environment Canada issued the wind warning around 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday.

The weather agency said windy conditions are expected to develop this evening and continue into Christmas Day.

Wind gusts of around 90 km/h are possible in many open areas.

The warning extends to Orangeville, Niagara, Hamilton, Waterloo, and parts of eastern Ontario.

A wind warning is issued when Environment Canada deems a “significant risk of damaging winds.”

“The big problem is branches and trees could come down. That could cause some power outages,” 680News meteorologist Harold Hosein said.

On Tuesday, CityNews meteorologist Natasha Ramsahai says winds could reach from to 70 to 90 km/h between midnight and 4 a.m. on Dec. 25.

Wet, windy and warm Christmas

A special weather statement remains in effect for southern and eastern Ontario, calling for periods of rain, mild temperatures and the potential for a few thunderstorms on Wednesday.

Temperatures will range from the high single digits to the low teens in some areas, and it could even break some previous records.

Hosein calls for a high of 10 C in the GTA on Wednesday with around 10 millimetres of rain.

However, Ramsahai says with a high expected to reach 12 C — and possibly warmer — there’s a chance Toronto could break the record high for Dec. 24 of 12.2 C set in 1964.

There’s also little chance the GTA will see a white Christmas, but windy gusts are expected to continue and then ease off later in the day.

Hosein said the rain could turn to wet snow or a rain-snow mix after midnight, but it won’t stick around to make it a white Christmas.

With files from Charlene Close and Christine Chubb

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