
Winter arrived in force across Saskatchewan on Tuesday, but Prince Albert work crews have been able to handle the influx of snow so far.
Sanding trucks were out at 5 a.m. on Tuesday, the City of Prince Albert reported, and snow crews immediately began clearing emergency routes. Plows were still working on emergency routes as of 2 p.m., but so far there is no need to bring in outside contractors to help.
“At this time, the city is only using our city crew,” reads a statement forwarded to the Herald by City of Prince Albert communications manager Wilna Furstenberg. “The City has a hired equipment list that we rely on for snow maintenance. These contractors are brought in as needed to support snow maintenance activities, but we aren’t specifically looking to bring in contractors to support our response above our usual snow maintenance needs. Crews will be on Emergency Routes again at 5:00 am tomorrow morning.”
That wasn’t the case across Saskatchewan. In Saskatoon, residents woke up to three to four inches of snow, the StarPhoenix reported, with another five to seven inches falling throughout the day.
Saskatoon declared its first snow day, and called in contractors to help with cleanup, sanding, and other types of street care, the StarPhoenix reported.
Conditions were no better on Saskatchewan highways, with the RCMP reporting 44 motor vehicles collisions and incidents around the province between 7 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The most common types of incidents were vehicles and ditches and jackknifed semis. No injuries were reported to police.
As of 1 p.m., overturned tractor-trailers were reported in Pense, Disley, east of Waldeck, east of Dafoe, and east of Regina near White City.
Environment Canada expects clear conditions on Wednesday and Thursday, with the snow falling again on Friday.
–with files from the Saskatoon StarPhoenix Staff