Wintry blast makes city and area roads dangerous
Posted Feb 28, 2011 9:32 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Calgary Police say there were well over 200 collisions Monday after the city got hit with winters latest blast.
At least a dozen of the crashes involved minor injuries, but nothing major.
Meanwhile, Environment Canada has issued snowfall warnings for areas including Crowsnet Pass, Banff, Canmore and K-Country.
The blast of snow is causing problems on some major highways.
Highway 93 near Lake Louise is closed due to avalanche warnings.
Highway 3 west of Crowsnest Pass is also shut down because of poor road conditions.
Police are warning motorists to stay off roads like Highway 2 south of Red Deer and Highway 22 north of Crowsnest Pass.
Doris Stapleton, with the RCMP, warns the roads are becoming increasingly slippery as the snow begins to pile up.
She says if drivers are already on the roads, they should take precautions.
“Please turn their headlights on and don’t rely on their daytime running lights. Slow down, be cautious,” she says.
Stapleton adds, “Make a decision, whether it’s worth it to you to drive on our dangerous highways.”
660 Meteorologist David Spence says the latest blast of winter is causing blowing snow. “Drifting snow is also causing a problem,” he adds. “Especially on lesser traveled roads. There’s a potentional there for some fairly deep snow drifts.
He says there should only be around 5 cm of snow falling within city limits.
According to Environment Canada, areas like Banff and Kananaskis Country will see in the range of 10 to 15 cm of snow, while Crowsnest Pass is expected to be hit by up to 25 cm.
