Saskatchewan experiencing warm up in temperatures this week

Temperatures have warmed up slightly this week for much of Saskatchewan and the prairies – an unexpected surprise for many during the dead of winter.

The rise in temperatures had many people out enjoying the latest winter warm up Wednesday.

"It's always a treat. We've had some big bits of snow a few weeks ago, and now we've more recently had some cold weather, so it's really nice to get out and get out of the cabin, so to speak,” one Regina resident told CTV News.

"I'm going for a walk around Wascana Park here. It's a little bit icy, but it's beautiful weather out here," another resident explained.

"I'm loving it. It's very rare for Saskatchewan."

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Temperatures on Wednesday hovered around zero degrees – marking a large contrast compared to a week prior when extreme cold warnings blanketed central and southern Saskatchewan.

Windchill values reached anywhere from -30 to -40 while daytime highs hovered around -27.

"We did have a ridge of high pressure, but in the winter that tends to bring in actually Arctic air, colder arctic air. Once that high pressure system moved out of the area, it made way for a lot of warm air coming in from the west,” said Danielle Desjardins, a Warning Preparedness Meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.

The average for this time of year in Regina is around -11.

Desjardins said it’s not uncommon to see a change in weather like this for the beginning of January.

"It does happen. It's anomalous for sure. Last year actually we started off the year quite warm, for about the first week of January, but then it got very cold."

As the week goes on, daytime highs will be in the minus single digits, but more snow is on the way as the weekend approaches.

However, the fluctuation in temperatures can make for treacherous road conditions.

The Regina Police Service (RPS) said they responded to 35 incidents between Monday and Wednesday morning.