Blizzard shuts down highways, every school in Winnipeg and others in province
CBC
A blizzard gusting across southern Manitoba is leaving a long list of highway and school closures.
An Alberta Clipper, with winds gusting to 90 km/h, is creating a shroud of blowing snow and cutting visibility to near zero in places. It is expected to bring 10-20 centimetres of snow across the region — with higher amounts possible in some areas — before ending later in the day.
There are also winter storm warnings in southeast Manitoba and extreme cold warnings for the north. A detailed list of the weather alerts and areas impacted is on the Environment Canada website.
In a rare occurrence, all school divisions across Winnipeg have cancelled classes for the day: Franco-Manitoban, Louis Riel, Pembina Trails, River East Transcona, St. James-Assiniboia, Seven Oaks, and Winnipeg.
The following school divisions have also shut down for the day:
Brandon School Division buses are not operating outside the city, where the storm has closed Alexander, O’Kelly and Spring Valley schools. All other schools are open and buses are running within the city. However, attendance is at parental discretion where travel is required.
Portions of the Trans-Canada Highway are closed, along with many more around the province.
The Winnipeg Police Service posted an advisory on social media that deteriorating road conditions have closed the Perimeter Highway between Fermor Avenue and Dugald Road.
In addition, some roads within the city have become difficult to navigate due to drifts and snow cover. It is recommended that motorists avoid road travel this morning and shelter in place until conditions have improved," the message says.
A complete list of travel information and road conditions is available on the Manitoba government website.
The City of Winnipeg says garbage and recycling collection has been cancelled for Thursday and will be done Friday instead. But that means those with a Friday collection date will be pushed to Saturday.
The Brady Road landfill and all 4R recycling depots are closed.
Snow-clearing crews have been working on the city’s main roads since 1 a.m. and will continue re-plowing throughout the morning, a news release stated.
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WARNING: This story contains profanity and details of racist language.