By Tom Spears, Ottawa Citizen, January 8, 2017
A southwest wind blew in mild air and moisture, finally, ending such a long streak of air literally from Siberia that someone could have built a case for Russian meddling with our weather.
The snow was the big news, and as it tapered off Monday afternoon, Ottawa had received 18 centimetres since it began falling late Sunday afternoon.
But it also turned mild in a big hurry.
Ottawa’s temperature started rising early Sunday, all day and through the night, and settled just below the freezing point by lunchtime Monday. It ended a three-day stretch with lows ranging from -25 to -28, and big, chilly winds.
The change in winds after weeks of blowing from the north was the main reason for the weather shift, said David Phillips, Environment Canada’s senior climatologist.