Warm and windy weather continues into Christmas Day

A high just above freezing for Christmas We should see a high temperature just above freezing for Christmas, and then we'll creep a little higher after that.

A strong ridge of high pressure across southern Alberta supported westerly flow across the Rockies Tuesday, driving temperatures into the low teens in some communities.

The unofficial daytime high in Lethbridge Tuesday was just shy of 14 C, helping that city tie for the “hot spot in Canada.”

A frontal system in northern B.C. was colliding with that warmer air north of the Capital Region late Tuesday afternoon, prompting freezing rain warnings from Environment and Climate Change Canada.

The same system will help push the jet stream south Wednesday, and daytime highs and overnight lows will begin to drop.

Windy conditions are expected to prevail overnight, with gusts up to 70 km/h expected in the southwest corner of Alberta.

Christmas Day will be warm and mainly sunny in Calgary, with a daytime high about three degrees warmer than average.