More than 100 crashes have been reported across the Greater Toronto Area as it experiences a wintry blast of weather in the form of freezing rain and ice pellets.
OPP urges drivers to stay off the roads if they can, residents urged to take care near water
The mix of precipitation is coming ahead of a potential ice storm on Sunday.
Many of the crashes are single vehicle collisions, with cars ending up sideways, going into ditches and concrete walls, spinning out and going the wrong way, according to Sgt. Kerry Schmidt, with the Ontario Provincial Police’s Highway Safety Division.
Schmidt urged drivers to stay off the roads completely if they can.”We have problems all over the place.”
Schmidt said in Mississauga, “Don’t drive if you don’t have to. It’s windy, it’s wet, it’s cold, it’s miserable. All of that altogether, and we got crashes all across the GTA.”
In the meantime, Toronto remains under a freezing rain warning, with Environment Canada saying an ice storm is “likely on Sunday.”
Freezing rain and ice pellets have arrived in Toronto, according to Environment Canada. On Saturday afternoon, the precipitation is expected to turn into “all ice pellets” before ice begins to build up later in the evening.
The freezing rain is expected to last into Sunday, the federal weather agency said.
Environment Canada said the weather this weekend could lead to significant buildup of ice and power outages.
