New Brunswick is seeing cancellations and closures as parts of the province deal with blizzard conditions.
READ MORE: Blizzard hammers Atlantic Canada causing flight cancellations, travel warnings
The southern half of the province is expected to see between 40 to 80 centimetres of snow, according to Environment Canada. York and Sunbury counties are expected to see the highest amounts of snow. Strong winds are also expected, with gusts up to 100 km/h.
In anticipation of the storm, NB Power activated its storm response on Sunday evening. By doing this, the utility says it has secured contractor crews – an additional 20 – to support its resources. It also opened its provincial command centre Sunday evening to monitor conditions as the storm pushes through the province.
On Monday afternoon, low-visibility and poor road conditions across the province prompted the government to close roads to non-emergency vehicles.
The Department of Transport and Infrastructure (DTI) posted a release warning motorists to stay off the roads and provincial highways in several areas.
The restrictions are in place in Saint John, Fredericton and Moncton districts, which also include the counties of Kent, Westmorland, Albert, Kings, Queens, Sunbury, York, Saint John and Charlotte.
DTI also said in the release that Highway 2 between Sackville and the Nova Scotia border is closed.
Schools across the province are closed with transit not operating in any of the major cities. Municipal offices across most of the province are closed today, along with malls and other stores.
School Closures
- Anglophone East School District – Closed for the day
- Anglophone West School District – Closed for the day
- Anglophone North School District – Closed for the day
- Anglophone South School District – Closed for the day
- Francophone North-East School District – Closed for the day
- Francophone North-West School District – Closed for the day
- Francophone South School District – Closed for the day
Fredericton
- Fredericton city hall and administrative offices – Closed for the day
- Fredericton International Airport – Closed until Feb. 14 at 6 a.m.
- Fredericton Transit – Cancelled for the day
- Fredericton trash collection – Cancelled
Moncton and Area
- Moncton municipal facilities – Closed for the day
- Moncton Council – Meeting rescheduled to Feb. 14 at 12:30 p.m.
- Codiac Transpo – Closed for the day
- Greater Moncton International Airport – Several cancellations, check your airline for details
Saint John
- Saint John City Offices and facilities – Closed for the day
- Saint John Transit – Closed for the day
- No solid waste pickup, delayed to Wednesday, Feb. 15.
Universities and Colleges
- University of New Brunswick – Fredericton – Closed for the day
- University of New Brunswick -Saint John – Closed for the day
- Université de Moncton – Closed for the day
In Moncton the Humanity Project has opened its doors all day to provide the homeless shelter from the storm and is serving two meals.
The RCMP are warning residents to avoid unnecessary travel.
Numerous outages
NB Power is reporting several hundred outages across the province on its outages website.
Spokesperson Marie-Andrée Bolduc said they are monitoring the storm and crews will remain on the road until power is restored unless work conditions become unsafe.
“This is light, fluffy snow, but it’s the high winds that are the cause of concern because of trees making contact with the lines and the lines slapping together,” she said.
Bolduc said each storm is different and comes with different challenges.
Some areas, such as White Head Island, are inaccessible to crews until ferries are running again, Bolduc said.
She added that people using generators are reminded to secure them outdoors and appliances should be unplugged to avoid a surge if power is lost.
Cities shut down
In an email statement to Global News City of Fredericton communications manager Wayne Knorr said the storm has “pretty much shut down the city”and is advising people to “stay put.”
Knorr said emergency crews are fully staffed and the city will monitor the situation as the day progresses.
Fredericton’s roadway operations manager said the best thing people can do is stay home, because plows are better able to to get through streets without cars being stuck in the roads.
In an interview with Global News, Walker said 23 plows are on the street, with 10 salt trucks also outside, but the weather is still making for some difficulties.
“There are streets that we’ve plowed that are completely covered again,” Walker said.
He said the city’s goal is to keep main roads open for emergency vehicle access, should the need arise.
“Unless it’s an emergency you should be staying home today,” Walker said, adding the crews will be back on the road as soon as the snow stops.
“It’s a lot of snow to move and it’s going to take us some time.”City of Moncton spokeswoman Isabelle LeBlanc told The Canadian Press people are advised to stay home.
“Public safety is the number one priority for everyone, and the less people we have on the street, the less chance there is of an accident,” LeBlanc said.
New Brunswick liquor stores are also closed for the day.
Keep roofs clean
As snow continues to accumulate in the province, Fire Marshal Douglas Browne is reminding residents to keep their roofs clean and exhaust vents free of snow and ice.
Browne said with the amount of snow expected, homes, arenas and warehouses are at risk of roof collapse and other structural damages.
“Snow accumulation brings risks of roof collapse, fire, explosion and carbon monoxide poisoning related to fuel heating systems,” Browne said in a release.
He added that heavy amounts of snow falling onto gas meters could cause damage to gas service at some facilities, and snow falling onto oil tanks can also be a hazard.
In the release, Browne said if people notice roofs that are sagging or visually deformed, new leaks forming, or sprinkler heads dipping below ceiling tiles, building officials should be notified and the building should be evacuated.
The province also released a statement Monday reminding New Brunswickers to have a carbon monoxide detector in their homes.
– With files from The Canadian Press
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