Canada’s weather agency says Hamilton beat a one day record for snowfall on Remembrance Day, however, Environment Canada says it’s far from the most snow ever for a November day.
On Monday Hamilton got 13 cm, which beat the Remembrance Day snowfall record of 8.6 cm set in 1983. However, that number is soundly beaten by the most ever for a day in November by about 15 cm.
“I always tell people that it’s kind of a kind of an interesting statistic, but it’s not really the most meaningful one because it’s pretty rare to get snow in early November,” Meteorologist Dave Phillips told Global News.
“I guess the more interesting question would be ‘what is that the biggest snowfall we’ve ever had for one day in early November?’ And the answer to that question is Nov. 10, 1921, when there was 28 cm.”
Sunday night’s “winter storm warning” forecast the potential for a November record when Environment Canada predicted up to 30 cm of snow by Tuesday morning due to a system created by unstable wind gusts off of Lake Ontario combining with the high terrain of the Niagara escarpment.
“The wind wasn’t hugely unstable,” said Phillips. “So that’s probably why we didn’t get the huge numbers that we could otherwise have gotten.”
Record or not, the snow that fell on Monday did have an effect on local roads. The Canadian Automotive Association (CAA) said they received close to 300 calls in the Hamilton area on Monday, with an average wait time of about 40 minutes most requiring tows.
OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said snowfall around the province resulted in over 400 reported collisions, which he said did not include small crashes reported to police.
Schmidt says “driver error’ is likely responsible for a majority of the crashes.
Hamilton police responded to 72 reported accidents with no injuries. Those numbers also did not include self-reported fender benders.
City spokesperson Emily Trotta says winter road maintenance began on Monday with salters and sanders clearing and de-icing the city’s main routes as well as escarpment crossings. Plows hit the road not long after.
“Main routes and escarpment crossings are prioritized first, and then collector roads and neighbourhood streets, respectively,” said Trotta.
When asked about a motion from city council in February to plow private sidewalks, Trotta said that issue is still up in the air and will go to the general issues committee as part of the 2020 Operating Budget process in late January.
Meanwhile, a number of regional school districts cancelled their bus services on Monday despite keeping schools open.
Only Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) and Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board (HWCDSB) operated buses as normal while school boards in Halton and Niagara cancelled school buses.
Environment Canada says there shouldn’t be anymore potential records broken in the Hamilton area for the remainder of the week but there could be significant snowfall for areas around Fort Erie.
“We suspect that the east end of Fort Erie and Buffalo will probably get clobbered on Thursday from snow squalls and going into Friday morning.”
- ‘Shock and disbelief’ after Manitoba school trustee’s Indigenous comments
- ‘Super lice’ are becoming more resistant to chemical shampoos. What to use instead
- Is home ownership only for the rich now? 80% say yes in new poll
- Invasive strep: ‘Don’t wait’ to seek care, N.S. woman warns on long road to recovery
Comments