WATCH: Moncton residents battle large snowfall
TORONTO – The first major snow of the season can mean snowmen and holiday cheer, but for over 1,000 customers still without power in New Brunswick late Friday afternoon, it might be more of a headache. And New Brunswickers aren’t the only victims of Old Man Winter’s wrath.
Thursday’s storm dumped up to 30 centimetres of snow in some areas of New Brunswick, causing damage to trees as well as flight and school cancellations. At one point, about 48,000 NB Power customers were without electricity. But the company says in a message on its website it expects to have “99 per cent of customers restored” by Friday evening.
Meanwhile, western Canada is feeling a freeze.
Temperatures in Calgary began dropping Thursday evening, falling to -19°C overnight. Environment Canada issued a special weather statement for Calgary just before 5 a.m., warning of brisk northerly winds which could cause blowing and drifting snow in open areas.
RCMP continued to advise Albertans to stay off provincial highways Friday as driving conditions were very poor after the storm. Avalanche warnings were in effect for some of Alberta’s mountain parks, and school buses stayed off the roads. The Edmonton area could see more than 50 centimetres of snow.
Officers said they were overwhelmed Thursday with several serious injury collisions on the QEII highway in the Red Deer area. An Alberta highway patrol officer’s vehicle was struck by an out-of-control semi truck while attending to one of the crash scenes.
READ MORE: 5 things to remember when driving in winter conditions
Avalanche Canada also issued a special warning for those traveling to the mountains of British Columbia this weekend, urging caution to recreational backcountry users in the mountains of B.C.’s Interior. Avalanche Canada says there is a particularly high danger of human-triggered avalanches through Monday, when the temperature is expected to drop and the snowpack will be weak.
Meanwhile, Thanksgiving travel south of the border was slowed by a sloppy mix of rain and snow earlier in the week. By early Wednesday evening, more than 700 flights had been cancelled, the bulk of them in the Northeast.
WATCH: Take a ride through the snowy roads of New Jersey.
READ MORE: Anthony Farnell’s winter forecast: Will it be as bad as last winter?
With files from Melissa Ramsay, Caley Ramsay, Patricia Kozicka and The Canadian Press
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