Winnipeg — and much of southern and parts of central Manitoba — are officially under a snowfall warning.
Environment and Climate Change Canada issued the snowfall warning Wednesday evening, warning that the city could see up to 30 cm of snow and the snowfall will last until Friday.
Thursday the city is expected to see around 5 to 10 cm and parts of Manitoba could reach more than 30 cm by Friday morning.
The updated snow totals are as follows as of 9 pm Thursday night. Swan River 30 cm, Winnipeg 9-14 cm of snow, Argle 13 cm of snow. Winds gusted 74 km at midnight at Winnipeg airport. Peaked at 82 in Gimli, according to Environment Canada.
Environment Canada also issued a snowfall warning for other areas across Manitoba. See the full list of snowfall warnings here.
The storm will bring wind, rain, sleet and snow to Southern Manitoba, and we can blame systems coming from our cousins to the west and the south.
Environment Canada told Global News Wednesday it’s likely the Parklands area — Dauphin and St. Rose are still going to see the worst of it with 30 to 40 cm of snow.
In Winnipeg, snowfall will get worse through Thursday, with 70-80 km/h wind gusts and blowing snow.
The city said plowing of major streets, sidewalks and active transportation pathways will get started at 7 p.m. Thursday. Work on back lanes is expected to start at 7 a.m. Friday.
“Things will ease off rapidly Friday morning, then we have another batch of warmer air pushing in Saturday which could be bringing us a large band of snow — but nowhere near as bad as this one,” said a spokesperson from Environment Canada.
At about 9 a.m., the province’s forecast centre issued a high wind effect warning for the south shores of Lakes Winnipeg and Manitoba.
“Forecasted wind from the north gusting up to 70 km/h and wave action could raise levels by as much as five feet or more between midday Thursday and late evening Friday,” they said
“Property owners are advised to take precautions.”
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Poor driving conditions
Here is a list of the current highway closures in the province:
HWY 1 – Falcon Lake to Ontario border
HWY 1 – Closed on the Ontario side of the border heading eastbound.
HWY 1 – Manitoba border to Broadview, Saskatchewan in both directions
HWY 3 – Sperling to S. Junction of Highway 34
HWY 5- Highway 353 to Highway 261
HWY 10 – Clear Lake to North entrance of Riding Mountain National Park
HWY 16- Highway 50 to Minnedosa
HWY 16 WB Lanes @ Highway 1 – crash
HWY 8 WB Lanes @ Perimeter – crash
HWY 190 (Centreport) – Perimeter to Winnipeg City Limits
Power outages
Bruce Owen of Manitoba Hydro said there were roughly 10,000 customers without power, mostly in the Interlake area, by early Thursday afternoon.
The reports of outages were coming in quickly while Owen talked to Global News, with 2,000 reported in the span of a just over five minute interview.
“This is the issue that we’re facing — as we fix one thing, we’re jumping to another,” he said. “You take one step forward, you’re also taking two steps back.”
That came a couple hours after he told 680 CJOB the utility had been getting calls about downed electrical lines in the Interlake.
“(They’re) seeing a little bit more snow, snow clinging on the lines and a little bit of wind. And with that, we have some live lines down and some poles down in both areas,” Owen had said Thursday morning.
Owen said Hydro was having issues with a major line that brings power to the Woodlands, St. Laurent, Teulon, and Winnipeg Beach areas.
“So, how we restore power is we’ve got to get the big stuff first, right — get the most customers on as quickly as possible — and then we’ll start to fan out and do the smaller outages,” he said.
Owen said the wet, heavy, sticky snow is hard on both Hydro’s infrastructure and the crews working to fix the outages.
“That snow clings to the power lines and that weight brings the lines down,” he said.
“In many instances, we’re seeing downed lines, and even in some areas, particularly in the Interlake area, we’re seeing poles snap.”
Owen said Hydro is bracing for “much of the same” as far as outages go throughout southern Manitoba for Thursday and into Friday. He says wind speeds will likely only add to the problems.
“Wind coming off the lakes, for instance, those lines start to move back and forth, back and forth, bouncing into one another, causing outages and again causing downed lines,” he said.
Owen said those without power may have to wait until Friday before crews are able to get the outage fixed.
“We’re no different than anybody else who’s out on the roads today,” he said.
“It’s slow going for us, and particularly in some of the more rural areas, it’s even slower going.”
The Winnipeg High School Football finals, scheduled to be played Friday and Saturday, were postponed until Monday and Wednesday, said spokesperson Rick Henkewich.
However, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers were practicing on the field at IGF Thursday, preparing for their next game in Montreal against the Alouettes, happening Saturday at noon.
With files from Elisha Dacey and Shane Gibson
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