Driven Snow: Flakes Give Way To Wind As The Storm Moves Out And The Clean-Up Starts
Posted December 19, 2008 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
After a day that saw drivers sliding, pedestrians freezing, homeowners shovelling – and shovelling and shovelling again – and plow crews going over and over the same territory for hours, it’s mostly done. The huge snowstorm, the worst of the season, left 15-20 centimetres in the city, but some areas got it a lot worse.
But as the snow peters out, the next problem won’t be freezes but breezes.
The bitter winds that left people shivering all day is also blowing all that powder around, reducing visibility and making it almost impossible to clear it off the roads and driveways. Some areas have experienced white-outs, a dangerous combination with the already icy surfaces.
The storm put its toe into southern Ontario during the morning rush, with steady but light flakes complicating but not really stopping the last commute of the week. It was a far different story by the afternoon, as thousands of drivers were forced to try and return in deep snow and slippery slush, with many getting stuck in ruts on the road (top left).
The hills were alive with the sounds of cars skidding around on them (below), with even buses having a tough time making it up some steep inclines. There were scores of accidents everywhere, including a 10-car pile-up on the 400 that closed the highway for several hours, and a bus-train-car collision that created havoc – but thankfully no injuries – in Brampton.
All the major routes were treacherous, with one of the 401 ramps shut down because tractor trailers couldn’t navigate the slippery conditions. It was a slow crawl everywhere, and by 10:45am, the OPP had already responded to more than 70 accidents on the highways. In town, there were simply too many fender benders and spin-outs to count, hundreds in all.
But miraculously, despite all the accidents, there were no serious injuries.
“Cars spinning and slipping and sliding,” notes one driver. “It is scary out there.”
Police blamed most of the mishaps on motorists not paying attention to the worsening conditions.
Police cite most common causes of crashes in bad weather
The only good news: it was the beginning of the holiday and many got a lot of warning about this meteorological monster. As a result, there was a lot less traffic than normal and fewer cars on the road. But those who did have to venture out had a perilous journey.
If drivers were having a hard time, so were the city’s 1,600-strong snow plow crews. The relentless flakes were coming down at a rate of several centimetres an hour and whatever they cleared away either fell again or the wind simply blew it all back.
Officials were pleading with drivers to be patient. “By the time we do a complete round of plowing we will have another round to do, [with] the amount of snow we are getting,” admits Toronto Transportation’s Myles Currie. “It is going to be a timely operation that might take 20 hours to clean the streets.”
And according to the city’s own timeline, they may not get to your side street until sometime on Saturday.
The reason: the main routes have to be plowed first. “We expect that our plowing operation on our side streets will be done sometime tomorrow morning around 9am ,” Currie concludes. “Tomorrow we are going to do a big cleanup because we expect more snow on Sunday. We are trying to maintain the capacity of the roads, so we are doing more work tomorrow.”
Can’t wait? Call (416) 338-SNOW to track where the nearest plow is in your area.
And if crews were frustrated you can only imagine the headaches for homeowners, who had to keep coming back over and over again to try and clear their driveways. Some simply gave up and decided to wait for it to stop. Others braved the bitter wind chills in an attempt to lighten a later load. And a few wound up not knowing where to put it all.
Many thought of getting away from it all to someplace warm, but couldn’t because of more than 150 flight delays and cancellations at Pearson International Airport .
Others sticking closer to home found their GO trains cancelled as the system tried to prevent switches from freezing over, a problem that plagues the entity every winter.
Some didn’t even bother trying to make it back to their houses. Many hotels were offering storm rates for those stranded downtown.
Scores of schools were closed or cut short, creating a snow day on what would have been the last classes of the year before Christmas vacation.
Walking was equally slippery, with this week’s first mini-storm and temperature plunge leaving ice buried under all that snow. A few hardy souls actually tried getting somewhere on a bike, an effort that seemed more optimistic than realistic.
Still, not everybody wound up with a hate for their fate. “We love winter!” yelled two young women, as they made snow angels in a no-longer pristine field.
“It’s great,” one man smiled. “You’re in Canada, what else would you expect at this time of year. Enjoy a white Christmas.”
Another woman notes, “Isn’t this just wonderful for the holiday season?”
So how much fell where you were?
Pearson Int’l.: 16cm
Downsview: 15cm
Markham : 19cm
Downtown : 15cm
St. Catharines: 24cm
Welland: 26cm
Hamilton : 20-25cm
The timeline of the storm went pretty much according to expectations. And while Toronto didn’t quite get the 20cm predicted as a possibility, there was still more than enough to last a wintertime.
Here’s the timetable of the first big storm of Fall 2008.
7am : Light snow started to fall in Toronto, a prelude of things to come. But most made it through the morning commute unscathed. Total: a trace-2cm
11am : It got a lot heavier. Snow began to fall more steadily and winds were also picking up, reducing visibility. Total: 2-4cm
1pm : The bulk of the mess is here. Freezing east winds put a bite in the air and began to blow with more force. Some places were experiencing whiteouts, as the winds began gusting up to 70 kilometres an hour. Total: 5-10cm
4pm : It’s down to snow showers, but driving is still difficult and winds remain a problem. Total: another 2-4cm.
7-8pm : The system mercifully moves out, and the big dig-out begins. But strong winds continually blow it back on the roads and your driveway.
Midnight : It’s Saturday morning and the worst is over. But now it gets even colder. The high for the day is expected to reach just -8C with wind chills in the -20C range.
Sunday: Get ready for another big blow. A new system is moving in that could leave an additional 10-15cm behind, making for another difficult commute on Monday. And the date of our next big blast couldn’t be more appropriate: it comes on December 21st, the first day of winter.
Window falls 30 storeys at construction site, wind may be to blame
Click here for closure and bus cancellation info
Our CityNews storm survival guide has all the links you need to find out what’s happening in transit, around the roads and on the street where you live. Find it here.
Check the roads through our Eyes cameras
Here are some important resources to help you weather this latest dose of winter:
The city’s money saving plan on snow removal goes out the window when these kinds of storms hit. But don’t expect anything to go quickly when Mother Nature takes over. There are 5,300 kilometres of roads to get through, 7,100 kilometres of sidewalks to dust off and at least 530 bridges to clean.
Snow Starts: Salters take to the main streets and expressways to try and keep them as clear as possible.
5 centimetres on ground: Plows don’t go out until at least that much has fallen. They only head for the main drags, which means your side streets will have to wait.
5-8 centimetres: Collector roads, bus routes and local streets with hills get the next go-round.
8 centimetres or more: Plows finally start to get to your local streets.
Side streets: The city will only promise they’ll ‘get to you’ after all the main routes are attended to. So getting out onto them may be the biggest challenge. It takes between 15-20 hours to get to your little bit of hidden heaven plowed and most will only come after the snow stops falling. If they’re not done 24 hours after the snow stops, you can call the city at (416) 338-SNOW (7669) for more information. That number will also let you check on the plows’ progress.
Sidewalks: They get the clearing treatment 48 hours after a storm. But remember, you’re responsible for clearing your ice within 12 hours after a big dump, or you could face a $105 fine.
Source: City of Toronto
Contacts and Websites
Here are some references to bookmark during the storm.
TTC service disruption advisories
Seniors/Disabled Free Sidewalk Clearing (City of Toronto only):
(416) 416-392-7768
