Snow falls on Calgary, keeping hope alive for a white Christmas

Snow fell on Calgary overnight,causing several traffic incidents early Saturday including one on 32nd Avenue in the northeast. (Photo: X@yyctransportation)

Like a tying goal in the late stages of the third period, snow fell on Calgary early Saturday morning, raising the chances of a white Christmas dramatically.

We won't see actual snowfall on Monday, though city surfaces have received a fresh layer of buildup and parts should stick around. The amount varied, but a City of Calgary media release issued early Saturday described it as “light snow”, topping out at somewhere below five centimetres.

Spokesperson Chris McGeachy tells CTV News the clearing work has already begun. 

"While people might be enjoying the holidays with their families, we do have crews who work shifts through the weekend," he said. "Right now our focus is major routes, like Crowchild and Glenmore. Those should hopefully be done (Saturday) and then we can turn our attention to (secondary) roads."

The quickly-changing conditions have created some icy surfaces across Calgary. 

The city’s X feed reported several incidents Saturday morning, including one involving a pedestrian on southbound 14th Street at Cromwell Ave NW around 8:30 a.m., and another on eastbound 32nd Ave at Deerfoot Trail N.E. around 9:15 a.m.

"Be cautious," McGeachy said. "When the sun goes down, those temperatures can drop so take plenty of time to go where you need to."

As the sun sweeps in and starts the melt, the City wants to remind drivers to watch for trouble spots, like hills, bridge decks and intersections. 

The last-minute snowfall comes as cities across Canada, including Winnipeg, the global epicentre of winter, face the prospect of a holiday season without much snow.

For those locals who love a white Christmas, the forecast for the weekend doesn’t offer much hope. It’s predicted to be sunny and windy Saturday, with dry conditions expected through Monday.