N.S. digging out after historic snowfall drops 150 cm in some areas

Cape Breton Regional Municipality under local state of emergency, residents urged to stay off roads

Aly Thomson, Anjuli Patil · CBC News

People in Nova Scotia were digging out Monday after a historic multi-day storm slammed much of the province, with some residents of hard-hit Cape Breton being told to shelter in place as crews struggled to clear snow-covered streets.

In an update with reporters on Monday, Premier Tim Houston said snow-clearing help is on its way from New Brunswick and P.E.I. He said the federal government is providing help with snow-clearing gear from Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Houston said it would be days before some rural roads are cleared.

“We get far more accomplished when we’re all on the same page. And I just want you to know there are a lot of good people working very hard to keep you safe,” Houston said.

Mark Peachey, Nova Scotia’s chief engineer, told reporters the top priority is making sure the 100-series highways are clear, followed by trunk highways, routes and then local roads and gravel roads.

“Our 100-series trunks and routes are starting to shape up,” Peachy said. “The bulk of the work ahead of us now will be with the locals and the gravels moving forward and … that’ll be a number of days yet before we get those cleared out.”

Peachy said crews did encounter cars stuck on exit ramps after trying to get off highways, which he said complicates clearing operations.

Local state of emergency in CBRM

Cape Breton Regional Municipality has declared a local state of emergency. Officials said residents should stay home and off the roads.

“Roadways are being cleared for emergency response and travel of essential workers,” a news release said Monday. “The process is slow and plows require several passes to deal with the significant accumulation.”

Houston said a state of emergency doesn’t mean snow clearing will happen faster. He said it means people can be fined for being outside unnecessarily, but he suggested he was uncertain why CBRM had made the move and why such powers were needed in this case.

Meteorologist Ryan Snoddon says volunteer observers in Cape Breton reported 150 centimetres of snow in the Sydney area.

CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon said the airport in Sydney, N.S., had received more than 90 centimetres of snow by Monday morning, while downtown Sydney was pummelled with 150 centimetres.

CBRM Mayor Amanda McDougall said the seven-day state of emergency gives the municipality the authority to control or prohibit travel and to authorize qualified persons to provide aid.

She said equipment was having a hard time getting through the heavy snow, with some plows becoming stuck.

“It’s so important that people stay home,” said McDougall. “It’s going to take a long time to get out of this.”

The municipality said the focus in the days ahead will be on clearing roads for emergency vehicles. Schools will be closed and Transit Cape Breton will not be operating on Tuesday. Officials were also asking non-essential services to remain closed until roads are considered safe again.

Snow encloses two vehicles in a driveway in Hammonds Plains, N.S., on Monday. The homeowner says this is the third time he’s tackled clearing the driveway since Saturday. (Aly Thomson/CBC)

Houston wrote to federal Minister of Emergency Preparedness Harjit Sajjan on Sunday requesting heavy equipment to assist with snow removal, portable fuel storage to help replenish equipment faster, and air transportation to help with the delivery of supplies and possible evacuations.

In a social media post, Sajjan said his team is “actively assessing the most effective ways we can support and provide assistance as necessary.”

Cape Breton Regional Police Const. Gary Fraser said the force received more than 550 calls for service over the weekend, including 30 car accidents and “many many many stranded motorists and abandoned vehicles.”

Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston at a news conference talking about the historic snowfall on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024. (Jean Laroche/CBC)

“So a lot of people didn’t heed the warnings and stay off the roads,” said Fraser, adding that road conditions were still “terrible” on Monday morning.

“Please be part of the solution, not the problem. Stay off the roads.”

Eskasoni First Nation in Cape Breton declared a local state of emergency on Monday, saying it had exhausted all resources and all snow removal vehicles were struck or otherwise unable to continue clearing snow.

Chief Leroy Denny said ambulances were not able to travel in the community Monday morning, which was affecting dialysis patients and could be dire if there were medical emergencies.

“We all need to work together here in Cape Breton,” said Denny, urging the province to send heavy machinery to the Mi’kmaw community.

Guy Deveau, executive director of maintenance and operations with the provincial Department of Public Works, said crews were seeing “metres of snow” being blown around, and some equipment was breaking.

The situation was snowier and windier as you moved east in the province, he said. The department was moving crews and equipment into eastern parts of the province Monday to ramp up snow removal.

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Deveau said while the 100-series highways were technically passable Monday morning, officials were recommending people stay home.

“We are having lots of challenges out there,” he said, adding that some portions of the 100-series highways were down to one lane. “If we don’t have units across them very frequently, they do fill in with snow.”

Halifax-area update

In Halifax, the municipality said crews need more time to clear all the snow.

“Residents are asked not to clear snow onto the street or sidewalk, as this impedes ongoing snow-clearing operations,” the municipality said in a news release.

“In the event of an emergency, residents are reminded to call 911. Snow-clearing crews ensure access for emergency responders.”

The municipality said all of its recreation facilities will reopen on Tuesday. Halifax public libraries are also expected to reopen on Tuesday.

Garbage collection in HRM will resume on Tuesday. Bins and bags need to be in a place clear of snow and fully visible and accessible from the road.

“Garbage boxes must have a clear path, be clear of snow and able to open freely. Collection vehicles may not be able to access private lanes safely. If you live on a private lane, to ensure collection, please bring your waste to the main road,” the news release stated.

Curbside collection of solid waste scheduled for Monday that was cancelled due to the winter storm will occur on Saturday. Curbside garbage limits will be relaxed for Saturday, Feb. 10, and Monday, Feb. 12, for the missed collection days

Meanwhile in the Municipality of the District of Guysborough, Warden Vernon Pitts has asked the province to send more snow-clearing equipment and operators to the region.

Pitts told CBC Radio’s Mainstreet Halifax the region is “down on equipment operators at the best of times,” so some secondary roads remain impassable.

He said this has delayed repairs by power crews, as there are about 100 households in the region without electricity as of Monday afternoon.

He urged residents to be patient and stay safe as the province digs out.

“I would caution people, like if you’re shovelling, take little bites — you’ll eventually get through it, but don’t overextend yourself, because with the road conditions, God knows when we’d get an ambulance to you,” he said.

RCMP closed Highway 102 north in Goffs on Monday morning after a tractor-trailer jackknifed across all lanes of the highway. The highway reopened later in the morning.

Fire crews were also busy battling a structure fire in Sydney on Monday morning, said Fraser.

“Eight people were living there and managed to get out. So there’s eight people that will be displaced until they can find another place to live,” he said.

Many streets in downtown Sydney were still unplowed on Monday. (Tom Ayers/CBC)

Snoddon said a stalled low-pressure system was to blame for the heavy snowfall.

“Typically, low-pressure systems follow the jet stream and move through region from west to east,” explained Snoddon.

“This storm was a cut-off low, which is disconnected from the jet stream, and as a result it stalled east of the region, causing the prolonged snowfall.”

Snoddon said many in the province were calling to mind a February 2004 storm dubbed by locals as “White Juan,” a nor’easter blizzard that dropped more than 100 centimetres of snow on some areas of Atlantic Canada — five months after Hurricane Juan caused widespread damage in the Maritimes.

“It’s safe to say this is the most historic winter storm to hit Nova Scotia since White Juan,” said Snoddon.

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He said depending on final official numbers, this may be the largest multi-day snowfall event for the Sydney area since Jan. 31 to Feb. 4, 1992, when 102 centimetres fell at Sydney Airport.

Flights grounded

Leah Batstone, a spokesperson for Halifax Stanfield International Airport, said blowing snow was the big issue grounding flights.

She said 70 flights were cancelled over the weekend, but flight departures and arrivals were expected to ramp back up on Monday.

In Halifax, police said there were 12 motor vehicle collisions over the weekend, and more than 500 tickets were issued in relation to the winter parking ban. The parking ban will continue to be enforced between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. Tuesday.

Amanda McDougall, mayor of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, is urging people to stay off the roads, saying the cleanup from a heavy winter storm is going to take time.

Travel

• Transit Cape Breton is not operating Monday.
• Halifax Transit has resumed service, but check for individual route cancellations.
• The 11:45 a.m. crossings from North Sydney to Port aux Basques and Port aux Basques to North Sydney have been cancelled.

Offices and services

• All municipal offices in Halifax Regional Municipality are closed Monday. They will reopen on Tuesday.
• Provincial government offices in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Halifax Regional Municipality and Hants, Colchester, Cumberland, Pictou, Antigonish, Inverness, Guysborough, Victoria and Richmond counties are closed.
• There are a number of impacts to Nova Scotia Health services.

Courts

• Pictou, Antigonish, Port Hawkesbury and Sydney courthouses are closed Monday.
• Shubenacadie provincial court has delayed opening until noon.
• Kentville and Windsor provincial courts have delayed until 11 a.m.