MOUNTAIN VEW COUNTY - Environment Canada issued a wind warning for the area this evening, after previously issuing a snow squall watch earlier this afternoon.
Environment Canada issued a wind warning at 5:23 p.m. for the following areas:
* Mountain View County near Carstairs and Stirlingville
• Mountain View County near Cremona and Water Valley
• Mountain View County near Olds and Didsbury
• Mountain View County near Sundre
• Rocky View County near Airdrie and Crossfield
• Rocky View County near Bottrel and Madden
• Rocky View County near Cochrane
The alert says strong winds gusting between 90 and 100 kilometres per hour will develop tonight.
"These strong northwesterly winds will persist through much of the day on Monday before easing by Monday evening. Falling snow in combination with these winds may lead to poor visibility in blowing snow," the alert says.
"Damage to buildings, such as to roof shingles and windows, may occur. High winds may toss loose objects or cause tree branches to break."
Wind warnings are issued when there is a significant risk of damaging winds.
Earlier this afternoon, a snow squall watch was in effect for
• Mountain View County near Carstairs and Stirlingville
• Mountain View County near Cremona and Water Valley
• Mountain View County near Olds and Didsbury
• Mountain View County near Sundre
• Rocky View County near Airdrie and Crossfield
• Rocky View County near Bottrel and Madden
• Rocky View County near Cochrane
The watch alert said "A cold front will bring pockets of intense snowfall and strong northwesterly winds to parts of western and southern Alberta tonight into Monday morning. For brief periods, snowfall and winds could combine to reduce visibilities to near zero."
Snow squalls, according to Environment Canda, cause weather conditions to vary considerably; changes from clear skies to heavy snow within just a few kilometres are common. Visibility may be significantly and suddenly reduced to near zero.
Snow squall watches are issued when conditions are favourable for brief but intense bursts of heavy snow producing near zero visibilities.
