Hamilton officials issue cold alert for Sunday night

It may be mild out now, but prepare for a flash freeze as temperatures fall to minus double-digits Sunday night.

Hamilton city officials have issued a cold alert.

Such alerts are issued whenweather conditions are expected to be below -15 C or -20C with windchill.

Environment Canada forecasters expect temperatures to drop to - 13 C tonight, but will feel closer to - 20 C.

The temperature as of 8 a.m. Sunday was - 4 C, but felt more like - 11C with the wind chill.

The federal weather agency's forecast predictstemperatures will drop from there, falling to -10 C this afternoon. Periods of light snow this morning are supposed to be broken up by a mix of sun and cloud rolling in for the afternoon, with wind gusting to 40 km/h.

How to keep warm

The alert triggers city notice to social agencies that work with vulnerable and homeless people.If you come across someone in need of shelter, you can call the Salvation Army to report their location:905-527-1444 Ext. 0.

Recreation centres are open during regular hours for people who need a place to be warm, and the MacNab transit terminal is open and heated as long as the HSR buses are running.

To lower therisk, the city is reminding residents to:

• Dress in layers of clothing.
• Keep inner layers dry.
• Wet clothing increases the risk of cold injury.
• Protect your face, ears and hands with a scarf, hat, and gloves.
• To protect your feet, socks must be dry.
• Wool is a good material to keep your feet dry.

This alert will remain in effect until a cancellation notice is issued.

Temperatures will rise as a bit as sunny conditionsmovein on Monday, when the forecast high is - 9C.