Deep freeze could make Tuesday one of Toronto’s coldest April days on record

Winter isn’t done with southern Ontario just yet — Tuesday brought a sharp temperature drop, possibly making it one of the coldest April days on record for Toronto.

Environment Canada issued a winter weather travel advisory on Tuesday morning, as Canada’s weather agency said 2 to 4 cm of snow was possible.

“A band of lake effect snow off Georgian Bay continues to impact the area this morning,” Environment Canada stated in its alert for Toronto. “While snowfall accumulations will be limited, untreated surfaces are expected to be icy and slippery. The morning commute will be impacted.”

The winter weather travel advisory lifted in Toronto just after 10:30 a.m.

The cold hit hardest in the early morning, with scattered flurries, temperatures dropping to -6 C, and wind chills making it feel more like -15 C in the city.

“Surfaces such as highways, roads, walkways and parking lots may become icy and slippery,” Environment Canada added.

The sun will break through the clouds by the afternoon, and temperatures are forecasted to reach -2 C or even -1 C, though the wind chill will feel closer to -10. Wind gusts hovered around the 60 km/h range on Tuesday morning before tapering off by the evening hours.

If the high gets to -1 C, it would be the coldest day on record since March 2, 2025, and, according to The Weather Network, Toronto’s coldest April daytime high since 2016, 2007, and 2003.

The average daytime high for Toronto at this stage in April is 10 C.

Chilly and messy extended forecast for Toronto

That cold isn’t going anywhere in the short term. On Wednesday, Toronto’s residents will wake up to -7 C temperatures and a wind chill value of -13. It will gradually increase to 4 C for the daytime high.

The rest of the week isn’t shaping up to feel spring-like in terms of temperatures, either. Thursday’s daytime high will be 2 C with a mix of rain and snow, and Friday’s high is forecasted at 5 C, with on-and-off rain showers for much of the day. The next chance to experience some sunshine could come on Sunday in Toronto.

As of Tuesday, just over 35,000 customers are still without power in Ontario, more than a week after a storm tore through the central and eastern parts of the province. Among the hardest-hit communities were those surrounding Peterborough and Orillia.

The March 30 ice storm saw more than a million homes and businesses in Ontario experience power outages.

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With files from The Canadian Press