REGINA — A powerful winter storm sweeping across Saskatchewan has triggered dozens of traffic-related calls, strained highway crews and prompted renewed warnings for residents to stay off the roads if possible.
The major snowstorm that blanketed a good portion of Saskatchewan on Feb. 18 has kept Saskatchewan RCMP, as well as highways crews, busy over the last 24 hours.
In a media availability, RCMP Insp. Lee Knelsen said they “saw this coming” and managed to get out some messaging to the public to be aware of what to expect.
“From yesterday, we had resources out dealing with the first start of it, which was the freezing rain and the blowing snow, and then we got the lovely snowfall last night as well,” Knelsen said. “So those members are still out. They’re still out working on those roads and making sure that we’re all safe out there.”
He said that right now Saskatchewan RCMP’s Divisional Operations Communication Centre has received around 65 calls for service for traffic-related incidents.
Those incidents, said Knelsen, would be “related to stranded motorists, motor vehicle collisions or other traffic-related incidents across the province.”
The good news, he said, is as of the last report “we have not seen any fatal collisions or any serious collisions at this time, which is a positive. And we will continue to monitor that moving forward.”
“Those winter driving conditions are quite evident out there with the icy conditions, the snow-covered roads reduce visibility. And we ask that the public be very aware of that when they are travelling, if they have to travel. If the public is requiring to travel, we want to make sure that they’re aware, it’s important to have an emergency kit within that vehicle, as well drive to the conditions of the roadway. The speed limit is a speed limit, but not when we see such poor conditions out there.”
Dan Palmer, senior communications consultant with the Ministry of Highways, said the weather has “brought some ever-changing highway conditions across Saskatchewan.”
“The regular snowfall has been challenging for the ministry snowplow crews in parts of the province. Part of that’s because of the snow build-up from both the falling snow and the wind, which of course can cause drifting on some of the highways. So, some of those drifts are heavy and they’re hard from packed snow. So, this means my teammates out in the snowplows on the road, they have to slow down to stay in control to safely plow the snow, which also means sometimes that work can take a little longer.”
Palmer said in the last 36 hours, Feb. 17 to 18, the Highway Hotline website and its mobile apps received more than 2.49 million visits. He encouraged people to check the Highway Hotline before deciding to travel.
“Depending on your route, it just might make more sense to stay home. Maybe watch the Winter Olympics and cheer on Team Canada.”
Heather Hubic, manager of media relations at SGI, called the conditions “quite treacherous.”
“That snow, that ice, the freezing rain that all reduces traction on the roadways, the drifting and blowing snow can also really reduce visibility. And all of these factors mean that winter driving conditions today in Saskatchewan are not ideal. And so that means drivers really must adjust their driving behaviours in order to compensate for what we’re seeing outside.”
She encouraged drivers to slow down and increase their following distance.
“In ideal conditions, you can have about three seconds between vehicles. But when those conditions are less than ideal, we encourage you to increase that following distance to about six seconds.”
Hubic also advised, “don’t leave the house if you don’t have to,” and check the Highway Hotline if you do need to commute.
As for weather conditions, Danielle Desjardins, warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada, said things have started to taper off in southwestern Saskatchewan, but “we are still seeing some pretty heavy, heavy snowfall over much of southern Saskatchewan and into northern Saskatchewan.”
She said there is reduced visibility and “we’re still expecting some pretty significant snowfall accumulations throughout the rest of the day today, tapering off from southwest to northeast slowly, but through tomorrow.”
Desjardins reiterated that travel conditions are poor, and suggested delaying travel plans as “things will be improving over the next 24 hours.”
When asked how challenging it has been for RCMP to deal with the snow situation, Knelsen said their “response in regards to dealing with this environment is nothing new for us.”
“This weather is — this is our typical Saskatchewan weather and it’s ever-changing. This, in my view, is just a snowstorm and we respond accordingly, making sure that we have the resources on the road. And as of now, I can report, there’s been no serious collisions, no fatalities on the Saskatchewan roadways. So, like I said, it’s an ever-evolving environment here with Saskatchewan and its weather, but we are certainly managing it and it’s nothing new for us.”
As for how common it is for people to have to submit claims due to issues like vehicles abandoned in a ditch, Hubic said they will see an increase in claims related to storms.
“We know that 27 per cent of all collisions in the winter months are due to poor road conditions,” said Hubic.
“So, in this case, we know that those road conditions are poor and there is a likelihood for collisions and perhaps more collisions than what we’d see on a typical day when conditions are ideal.”
Behind the system, “we are seeing a range of high pressure build into the province,” said Desjardins. “That’s ushering in some cold Arctic air returning again to the province. So, we’re expecting temperatures to be well below normal pretty much for the rest of the month.”
Over the next four or five days, she said, she expects daytime highs in the minus teens or even minus-20s, with overnight lows pushing the minus 30s. “We could be seeing some extreme or some cold warnings go out in the wake of this system over the weekend as well.”
At this point, the RCMP say they are unaware of any highway closures related to vehicle collisions, but advised motorists to check the Highway Hotline for the most up-to-date information.
As for the highways situation, Palmer confirmed there are a number of highways where currently travel is not recommended.
“The key thing there is check the Highway Hotline because, of course, the situation is evolving with the weather,” said Palmer.
“We often remind folks that before you head out, check it. But once you reach your destination, if you decide to go forward, check it again before you return. Because as we’ve been seeing throughout the system, and it sounds like in the days ahead, the weather is constantly changing. So, check it before you begin your journey. Check it when you get to your destination to see if you should return.”
