Environment Canada issued a yellow alert Friday morning for Niagara and Haldimand-Norfolk and warned of high winds across the region and in Hamilton, Brantford and Burlington.

Yellow is the lowest of three colour-coded alerts that can be issued by the weather agency. The weather alert colours move from yellow, to orange, to red, as the potential risk increases.

Early Friday morning, Environment Canada issued the yellow alert for communities along the shore of Lake Erie. The weather agency says that winds with gusts of 90 kilometres per hour and “potentially in excess” of 100 km per hour could travel across areas along the Lake Erie shore and were expected to begin this morning, “easing late this afternoon or early this evening.”

The agency says that “showers and the risk of thunderstorms will push into the region this morning,” with a cold front “then expected to push through the region this afternoon.” In Niagara, the cold may lead to “another wave of strong winds with gusts up to 90 km/h and potentially in excess of 100 km/h for areas along the Lake Erie shore.”

The agency warns there could be damage to “roofs, fences, branches or soft shelters is possible. Some property damage is possible. There is a risk of injury due to flying or falling debris.”

Hamilton, Brantford and Burlington are under a special weather statement affecting most of southern Ontario. It warns of thunderstorms in the morning and wind gusts near 70 to 80 km per hour.