Residents across midwestern Ontario are being encouraged to stay home as the region continues to be hit with blizzard conditions and snow squalls.
South Bruce OPP have shut down Highway 21 from Amberly to Kincardine and from Kincardine to Port Elgin due to high winds, blowing snow and poor-to-no visibility. Bruce Road 23 between Lorne Beach Rd and Bruce Rd 15 and Highway 19 between Kincardine and Walkerton are also closed due to poor conditions.
Just before 9:30 a.m., the Municipality of Kincardine announced it's pulling all plows from rural roads due to the conditions.
Half an hour later, Huron OPP warned conditions on the roads were getting worse, leading them to close sections in the northern part of the county, including Blyth Road from Bluewater Highway to the Perth border and Brussels Line from Walton to Amberly.
Numerous school buses have been cancelled for the day Thursday and many schools are closed in Huron-Perth. In Bruce-Grey, Bluewater District School Board has closed all of its schools and work sites for the day. The full list of closures can be found at CKNXNewsToday.ca/closures.
The region is expected to get 20 to 30 centimetres of snow by Friday as lake effect snow squalls continue to come off of Lake Huron. The highest snowfall amounts will be closer to Lake Huron.
A blizzard warning is in effect for North Huron County, Grey County, and South Bruce County, while South Huron County, Perth County, and North Wellington County are under snow squall warnings.
In addition to the dumping of snow, strong wind gusts of up to 80 kilometres an hour will add to the poor conditions by creating visibility issues.
Environment Canada has stated that travel will be difficult to near impossible under the current conditions and recommends people stay home.
"Travel is not recommended. If you must travel, keep others informed of your schedule and destination and carry an emergency kit and mobile phone," the national weather agency stated. "If you become stranded in a vehicle do not leave. The vehicle offers a form of protection from the cold. A single person walking through the snow is harder to find than a stranded car or truck."
Significant weather events have been declared in Huron County, Grey County, Bruce County, the Township of Huron-Kinloss, the Township of Saugeen Shores, and the Township of Georgian Bluffs. The declaration notifies the public that due to current conditions drivers should be cautious when on the roads and that it may take longer than usual to bring the condition of the roads back to a state of repair.
The lake effect snow is expected to continue into Friday morning, according to Environment Canada.