The morning commute Tuesday in midwestern Ontario proved to be a tricky one.
Snow combined with high winds left many roads throughout the region snow covered, and in some cases impassable. The list of road closures was lengthy with more than 20 blocked off. That included Highway 21 from Amberley to Port Elgin, Highway 6 from Wiarton to Tobermory, and Bruce Road 86 from Amberley to Lucknow.
Huron County, Perth County, Bruce County, Grey County, and the township of Georgian Bluffs have all declared a significant weather event. The declaration informs residents it will take longer for crews to bring roads to a state of repair. Huron-Kinloss ended the significant weather event status there just after 3 p.m. on Tuesday.
The poor road conditions also saw many community centres, medical facilities, and school buses cancelled and some schools closed in Huron-Perth, Grey-Bruce, and Wellington County. The full list is on the CKNX closures page.
Wind gusts up to 80 kilometres an hour that began Monday afternoon knocked out power in some spots. The damage was largely caused by the severe winds bringing tree limbs and trees down on power lines and equipment. Hydro One crews were dispatched in full force and worked throughout the night. As of Tuesday morning, only a few pockets of outages remained in Wingham, Teeswater, Hanover, and Wiarton. The power company anticipates all power will be restored by noon. Anyone who does encounter a downed power line is advised to keep at least 10 metres back, even if it does not appear to be live, and report it to 911 or Hydro One at 1-800-434-1235.
As the clean up continues, more snow is in the forecast. Environment Canada has north Huron and south Bruce under a snow squall warning. The squall warning was ended for Perth, south Huron, and north Grey around 10 a.m. The national weather agency expects another 5 to 10 centimetres to fall before the lake effect snow off Lake Huron and Georgian Bay weakens in intensity by early afternoon. Winds will ease around the same time as the squalls weaken.
Anyone who does need to travel is advised to slow down, watch for tail lights ahead and be prepared to stop.