A severe thunderstorm watch in effect for regions in the GTA. Environment Canada has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Toronto, warning of “damaging” wind gusts of up to 110 km/h, hail and the risk of a tornado. The rain is expected to start falling later this afternoon or early evening and the alert issued by the federal weather agency spans most of southwestern Ontario. “A cold front moving through the area is expected to trigger a few severe thunderstorms,” Environment Canada said in the alert. “Large hail can damage property and cause injury. Very strong wind gusts can damage buildings, down trees and blow large vehicles off the road.” A special weather statement is also in effect for the region due to the strong southwesterly winds. When exactly will the thunderstorms begin? The weather in and around Toronto is expected to take a turn early this evening. “Along the day today, we will have some isolated thunderstorms in the next few hours, but nothing severe at the beginning,” Barabara Lapido, a warning preparedness meteorologist from Environment Canada told CTV News. “Just a little bit of rain, but around 5 p.m. that’s when the potential for severity is increased.” ⚠️ A severe thunderstorm warning is now in effect for Toronto⚠️ Hazards: 🌬️Strong and potentially damaging winds. Up to nickel size hail. People outdoors should seek shelter at this time. Latest: https://t.co/k7C7wgNJuI #ONwx #ONstorm pic.twitter.com/IP3vOVOHoP — ECCC Weather Ontario (@ECCCWeatherON) April 29, 2025 Environment Canada is forecasting a 70 per cent risk of thunderstorms in Toronto. The main thing to watch out for is the extremely strong wind, Lapido says. “A cold front” is expected to move through parts of southern and eastern Ontario kicking off potentially long lines of thunderstorms that could affect areas from the Ottawa Valley through the GTA before heading towards London and Windsor, Geoff Coulson, a warning preparedness meteorologist from Environment Canada told CTV News. What can you do to prepare for major thunderstorms? Some of these thunderstorms produce strong wind gusts that can pick up loose objects and cause them to become dangerous projectiles that can cause significant damage to buildings, experts warn. So, the first order of business should be to secure any lawn furniture or loose objects on your property or move them indoors to keep them from flying around. Severe thunderstorm watches are issued a few hours before the storm rolls in, so experts advise keeping a weather app handy so you can keep an eye out for any alerts in your area. When is the thunderstorm expected to end? Experts say the “worst of the storm activity” is expected to move down into New York after around 9 p.m. Cooler air will flood into the region in the wake of the cold front that will drive the late afternoon storms, according to Coulter. “The temperature will drop from 25 C Tuesday afternoon to just 2 C by Wednesday morning,” he says. Thursday and Friday could see the return of some showers, going into Saturday morning. However, Sunday is expected to be mainly sunny.