2008/04/10 | CityNews.ca Staff

While Toronto is bracing for a major soaking that will last three days, we should be grateful we’re not out west. Calgary got hit with the kind of snowstorm you’d more correctly associate with mid-February than early April.

A stunning 19 centimetres fell in the city on Thursday, and forecasters hadn’t really been expecting it. The  mess created havoc in the streets, even in a city where snow is a given.

“I see three accidents,” recalls Matthew Christie. “Then I see this bus trying to get up this hill, okay. Jackknifes in the middle and then rolls back down. I thought that was unbelievable. All the kids were in the back with the windows down going: ‘tell my mom I love her!’”

In the end, no one on the bus was hurt but the same couldn’t be said for the plans of residents who were less than pleased with the sudden return of winter.

So where did it come from? It was caused by a jet stream emanating from the northern region of the country. The good news for Calgarians is it won’t last. By the weekend, the temperatures are predicted to hit 20C – a lot warmer than Toronto’s miniscule 8.

But overall, most of us wouldn’t want to trade places.