Stay home.
That is the advice from city of Saskatoon officials as a second wintry blast hits the city.
All non-essential travel should be avoided and people should take the necessary steps to ensure their safety during the storm, said Pamela Goulden-McLeod, the city’s director of Emergency Management Organization.
“Today is less about running out and stocking up on things and more on just staying put,” said Pamela Goulden-McLeod, the city’s director of Emergency Management Organization.
“We really want residents to take this chance to stay inside and stay safe.”
If people do venture out and get stuck, they are being asked to wait for help.
City officials said if drivers get stranded, they should not panic, stay in their vehicle and contact 306-975-8300 — or 911 if it is an emergency.
The Saskatoon Fire Department said responders will be in uniform and clearly identifiable and will bring stranded individuals to a safe location.
Terri Lang with Environment Canada said 10 to 15 cm of snow fell on Saturday and more is coming Sunday.
“The winds have kicked in and the heavy snow is in the vicinity,” Lang said.
“We are expecting this heavy snow to continue through the afternoon and through the evening.”
Lang said the snow will taper off overnight, but added it is still unclear how much may come down.
“On top of the 10 to 15 centimetres that the city received, we’ll probably be in the neighbourhood of another 20 to 30 centimetres extra on top of that.”
Crews were out overnight Saturday and into Sunday morning clearing Circle Drive and high-traffic streets, and sanding major roads as freezing rain and blowing snow left streets a slippery mess.
Goran Saric, the city’s director of roadways, fleet and support, said the current focus is maintaining mobility on priority streets and sidewalks through a number of measures including sanding, salting and grading.
“We’re putting everything we have into this storm today, tonight, tomorrow, and into the coming days,” Saric said.
“Once the highest priority streets are cleared, we’ll move through the rest of the system, at times returning to the highest priority roads multiple times to maintain mobility.”
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There is the possibility voting in the municipal election on Nov. 9 could be impacted by the storm, but it will go on.
“The city will do everything it can to keep the roads clear and provide access to the polling stations,” said city manager Jeff Jorgenson.
“How it affects voter turnout is to be seen, but I can commit that the city will do everything we possibly can to keep the roads open.”
This storm is being compared to the Jan. 10, 2007, blizzard that dumped a one-day record 36 cm of snow on the city.
That storm brought the city to a standstill, shutting down public services, transit, the airport and all highways in and out of the city.
“I remember the next morning driving in and it almost post-apocalyptic. There were vehicles abandoned everywhere and not a person to be seen,” Alyson Edwards, a Saskatoon police spokesperson, said on the 10th anniversary of the 2007 blizzard.
Whiteout conditions lasted for nine hours and snowdrifts as high as cars forced some people to spend the night at work instead of enduring a white-knuckle drive home.
Travel is currently not recommended on all highways around Saskatoon.
Saskatoon remains under a winter storm warning on Sunday afternoon, with snowfall totals of 30 to 50 cm possible by Monday.
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