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Big snow causes big problems in Central Alberta

Mother Nature wreaked havoc on Central Alberta roads throughout the weekend and well into Monday morning.
hwy-2-ditch-car
Mother Nature wreaked havoc on Central Alberta roads throughout the weekend and well into Monday morning.

Mother Nature wreaked havoc on Central Alberta roads throughout the weekend and well into Monday morning.

Icy areas in the southbound lanes on Hwy 2 near Hwy 12 led to a four vehicle collision on Monday around 11:30 a.m., causing traffic to be diverted onto Hwy 2A north of Lacombe.

The collision involved a large commercial vehicle and affected traffic for nearly 3 hours.

No injuries were reported.

“There are some slippery sections from Red Deer to Innisfail that appear bare but are not,” Cst. Christopher Warren with the Innisfail Traffic Unit said Monday morning. “We are urging everyone to drive according to the winter conditions.”

Buses for the Wolf Creek Public School Division and Chinook’s Edge were cancelled Monday. All bus routes in the Caroline and Corridor areas were cancelled for Wild Rose Public Schools as well as numerous routes in Rocky Mountain House. Rural buses for Red Deer Catholic schools were also cut for the day.

Travel along Hwy 2 in both directions was not recommended over the weekend with reduced visibility due to blowing snow and snow covered roads. Traffic had been reduced to one lane in most sections.

Red Deer city crews started de-icing bridges and hills early on Saturday and were “working round the clock” to manage snow covered roads, said public works manager Greg Sikora.

“We completed all priority one areas on Sunday: hills, bridges, overpasses within the target period,” Sikora said, noting “contracted forces” were pulled for backup help.

Crews were out Monday clearing sidewalks, transit stops and maintaining traction control in all 12 city zones.

All priority two zones (arterial roads and high collision intersections) were set to be completed by 6 a.m Tuesday morning.

About 23 km of select trail in the Waskasoo Park system was scheduled to be cleared as well for Tuesday, Sikora said.

“We’ll be monitoring to see if any more snow over the next few days will put us back through this cycle and possibly then put us through the downtown clearing cycle. We haven’t hit the trigger yet for the downtown clearing.”

A total of 33 cm of snow fell in Red Deer between Saturday and Sunday, the largest amount across the snow-covered province.

However, the sun is set to shine in the region on Tuesday and Wednesday due to a high pressure system passing through, according to Environment Canada.

Temperatures for Tuesday are expected to reach a high of -4C with a low of -17C and a high of -1C on Wednesday with a low of -13C.

To report unsafe roadways, call public works at 403-342-8238.

rfrancoeur@www.reddeeradvocate.com