While London, Ont., snow-clearing crews finish cleaning up from a “major” winter storm on Wednesday, city officials are already preparing for another significant snowfall expected to hit this weekend.
Between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Elgin County OPP said they responded to a total of 21 collisions, including two where police cruisers were struck.
No serious injuries were reported.
The “Texas low” that hit most parts of southern Ontario dumped 15 centimetres of snow on the Forest City, slowing down travel and creating “less-than-ideal conditions” for commuters getting to and from work.
John Parsons, the city’s manager of transportation and roadside operations, said that local plows have been working since 6 a.m. Wednesday to clear streets, bus stops, and sidewalks.
According to Parsons, the city has 78 road plows, 48 sidewalk plows, as well as 28 salt trucks.
Once everything is cleared out, he said that crews will rest up for the next snowfall, which forecasters are predicting is right around the corner.
Expected to move in on Sunday, the next storm could see upwards of 10 centimetres of snow across the London region.
Looking ahead into the weekend, Global News meteorologist Anthony Farnell said that colder air will be in place, meaning the snow that falls will be light and fluffy in most areas.
Parsons said that preparations are already underway.
“Once we get through this system, we’ll be checking our equipment over make sure everything’s in running order and then we’ll be ready for Sunday,” he said.
Despite winter storms heading full steam ahead across the province this week, Parsons said that “this has certainly been a pretty quiet January so far.”