Photo credit: Highway Hotline camera
The Highway Hotline was not recommending travel Friday afternoon in several areas including Meadow Lake, North Battleford, Rosthern, Prince Albert, Melfort Tisdale and Moose Jaw.
Warman RCMP responded to numerous weather-related incidents on Highway 16 near Borden on Friday afternoon. In a 4:30pm news release, RCMP stated poor visibility and icy conditions forced the closure of Highway 16 near Borden for an undetermined amount of time. You can view the latest Highway Hotline report here.
Rosetown RCMP responded to a jackknifed semi blocking the westbound lane of Highway 7 near Fiske.
Environment Canada reinstated a snowfall warning for the Saskatoon area on Friday afternoon, predicting 15 to 20 centimetres of snow could fall in total by Saturday morning. Approximately 10 centimetres of snow had already fallen in Saskatoon by late morning.
Snowfall amounts are difficult to track during very windy conditions. Official readings as of Friday morning were 28 centimetres at La Ronge and Holbein, which is located west of Prince Albert. Emma Lake had 18 centimetres and Prince Albert 13 centimetres.
Saskatoon Police attended approximately 52 collisions during the day Friday. The most notable was a collision between a City Transit bus and an SUV on the Taylor Street overpass at Circle Drive. One person on the scene was assessed for minor injuries.
The City of Saskatoon declared a snow event after receiving 10 centimetres of snow, mainly on Friday. Contracted equipment and operators were deployed to support City crews on priority streets—Circle Drive, Idylwyld Drive, 22nd Street, 8th Street and College Drive. More information is available here.
Given the recent amount of snow accumulation, the Civic Operations Centre snow management facility is nearing capacity. It remains open but could be closed on short notice. The Wanuskewin and Central Avenue snow disposal sites are currently closed due to muddy conditions.
It appears the worst storms may be in northeast Alberta. RCMP say possibly hundreds of people were stranded overnight Thursday on Highway 63 heading south of Fort McMurray. One of the crashes involving a semi, blocked north bound traffic near Sand Tiger Lodge.
