No record storm, but still trouble
Storm blamed for dozens of accidents, cancellations, plane and bus delays
A weekend blast of snow made travel messy and left residents digging out,
It wasn’t quite a record-setting snowfall, but this weekend’s winter storm dumped more than 15 centimetres of snow on the cap- ital Saturday and Sunday, blanketing the region and disrupting many Sunday morning plans.
The storm originated in the U.S. and hit the area late Saturday night, bringing with it snowfall that intensified through the night and into Sunday.
The worst of the storm was over by mid-morning Sunday. Environment Canada’s winter storm warning for the region ended just before 11 a.m.
According to Environment Canada, 11 centimetres of snow fell at the Ottawa airport on Sunday. That’s on top of the 5.4 centimetres that fell in the waning hours of Saturday.
The 11 centimetres was just short of the largest snowfall recorded on a Dec. 15 at Ottawa airport since official records started in 1938. A record 12.6 centimetres fell on Dec. 15, 1987.
But Mark Schuster, severe weather meteorologist at Environment Canada, pointed out that with a few big snow storms per year and only about 70 years of data, large snowfalls often end up setting a record for that specific date.
“The more important thing is that it had a really high impact: the temperatures were really cold, road conditions were really slippery, wind-chill temperatures were really high,” he said.
The snowfall and strong, gusting winds caused low visibility on the roads and dangerous driving conditions. Blowing snow and whiteouts were reported late Saturday night.
The City of Ottawa urged residents to be prepared for winter driving conditions, advising them to drive carefully, leave extra time to travel or consider public transit. Nonetheless, there were more than 65 reported car accidents between midnight and 2 p.m. on Sunday, according to Ottawa police.
OC Transpo reported delays of up to 25 minutes Sunday. A handful of flights out of Ottawa were cancelled or delayed. And Operation Red Nose, the popular free service that sees volunteers drive people home in their own cars, suspended operations for the night. It will resume next weekend.
The city announced an overnight parking restriction for Sunday night, banning vehicles without onstreet permits from parking on city streets from 1 a.m. to 7 a.m.
Schuster said Environment Canada heard reports of up to 20 centimetres in the Ottawa area, and even 25 centimetres toward Cornwall.
The heavy and blowing snow had died down by around noon, but light flurries continued to fall throughout the afternoon after many residents had shovelled their way out of their homes. There remained periods of light snow forecast for Sunday night.
Winds, which had been gusting up to 50 km/h, died down by noon, with temperatures reaching as high as -10 C, providing a reprieve from frigid temperatures.
But the relief was short-lived. Sunday night was expected to have a low of -18, or -25 with the wind chill.
The cold temperatures are expected to continue Monday, which has a forecasted high of -17, with temperatures feeling as low as -27 with the wind chill.
Ottawa Public Health unit’s frostbite warning, which started Friday, has been lifted, but a frostbite advisory remains in effect until Wednesday.