MONCTON – Winter is once again walloping the Maritimers bringing even more snow to New Brunswick.
Snow plow operators are tired and snow removal budgets are getting chewed up fast while emergency service agencies are starting to worry about people’s safety.
Riverview’s Angela Berthelot’s snow plow marker, a Canadian Flag, just isn’t cutting it anymore.
“It’s unbelievable I mean we don’t know where to put it anymore, it’s just we are running out of room,” she said.
That’s because since Jan. 23, more than 100 cm’s has fallen on parts of New Brunswick.
Nathan Orr speaks for Riverview Public Works and says crews are exhausted.
“It just seems endless. One 16-hour shift after another.”
Hauling away the snow takes a massive bite out of the snow removal budget. The Town of Riverview says it’s too soon to say if the town will have to dip into its reserves.
But Orr says plow operators are already running on empty.
“I actually had two guys call in sick today, the stomach flus and everything else, they are susceptible to all that right now so. They are just so tired out,” he said.
And he says there just hasn’t been enough time in between storms to get the sidewalks cleared completely or clean out room for essential services.
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“Hydrants are kind of suffering right now we so can widen things up,” he said.
That’s why Mitch Short, Deputy Chief of Fire Prevention for the Riverview fire department, is asking residents to help out by digging out the fire hydrants in front of their homes before this next dumping.
“If we don’t have access to that fire hydrant you are going to delay our response and really increase the time that we need to do others things,” he said.
Cancellations coming in as storm arrives Monday night
Because of the anticipated blizzard, Moncton’s Codiac Transpo will run its last trips Monday evening between 6-6:30 p.m. They plan to resume Tuesday morning at 9 a.m., but are asking residents to follow social media for further updates.
The province’s planned strategic program review public dialogue session for Monday evening in Moncton has been postponed.
Overnight Moncton waste collection for Tuesday has been cancelled.
City of Saint John operated arenas will be closing at 5 p.m. Monday and re-opening Tuesday at tomorrow.
Many of Fredericton’s recreation facilities have also closed Monday evening.
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