Record warmth brought December flip-flop weather HERE

Tuesday, December 15, 2015, 7:52 AM - We called it "Ontario's divide" and a system that swept through the province on Monday certainly brought a wide variety of weather.

"After over 24 hours of freezing rain in Timmins, over 50 mm of rain in Sault Ste. Marie and thunderstorms and summer-like heat in southwestern Ontario, the powerful low pressure system is moving out," says Weather Network meteorologist Erin Wenckstern.

A freezing rain warning covered parts of northern Ontario Monday and prompted school bus cancellations in the Timmins area.

Meanwhile, much of southern Ontario enjoyed yet another taste of early fall in December.

"Parts of the Niagara region experienced rare September warmth in December with temperatures peaking in the low twenties under partly sunny skies," said Environment Canada in a weather discussion. "These temperatures are quite the dramatic contrast to average temperatures expected this time of year. Overnight lows are typically several degrees below freezing, and daytime highs are near or just above the zero degree mark."

VERSUS

BRIEF TASTE OF WINTER

The passage of a cold front on Thursday will bring much cooler temperatures, supportive of lake-effect snow east of the Great Lakes.

"This could even be the first snow for Buffalo, who have broken a record for the latest start to seeing snow ever," Wenckstern says. "It will be a cooler weekend, yet seasonal for southern Ontario, with the chance for seeing flurries in the Greater Toronto Area."

The lake effect shuts down on Sunday however, as warmer air arrives and by Monday, the warming trend begins once again.

"If we look at Christmas week as a whole, we’re looking at well above seasonal temperatures and we’ll probably be in the double digits for a couple of days," says Weather Network meteorologist Dr. Doug Gillham.

Winter Forecast 2015-16: Here's when the snow and cold arrive: