Spring snowstorm brings school and highway closures to southern Manitoba
Snowfall warning remains in place for much of the region but 'brunt of it was last night': meteorologist
Blowing and drifting snow, along with poor visibility, have led to the closure of several schools and parts of highways across southern Manitoba.
The region had an abrupt return to winter on Thursday afternoon, as an Alberta clipper moved into the western part of the province and spread through the day.
The highest amount reported so far as of Friday morning was in Matlock, in the Interlake region, where 19.6 centimetres had fallen in the past 24 hours.
Parts of central Winnipeg saw as much as 18 cm, while the rest of the city recorded anywhere between five to 15 cm, according to Natalie Hasell, a warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment Canada.
That data comes from the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network, or CoCoRahs — a network of citizen volunteers who measure weather data, from which Environment Canada gathers reports.
Their information is posted on maps available to the public.
A snowfall warning from Environment Canada remains in place in some areas for Friday, but not much more snow is anticipated — perhaps two to four centimetres, Hasell said.
The warning says total amounts of 15 to 25 cm are expected in some areas, but that's referring to the total accumulations since Thursday, she said.
"The brunt of it was last night."
As a result of the conditions, all schools are closed for the day in the following divisions:
- Lakeshore.
- Lord Selkirk.
- Sunrise.
Colony schools are closed in the Rolling River School Division, but all community schools are open.
The Franco-Manitoban School Division has two school closures — École Jours de Plaine in Laurier and L'École Aurèle Lemoine in St. Laurent.
Bus service is cancelled for École Saint-Lazare and École Saint-Georges, but the schools are open for classes.
The highway closures mostly impact the western area of the province, but many other highways across the entire south, including the Trans-Canada Highway and the Perimeter Highway surrounding Winnipeg, are partly snow-covered.
A map and more information on highway conditions can be found on the provincial government website.
Other parts of the province have so far seen snowfall amounts from as low as 0.5 cm in Brandon and 1.3 cm near St-Pierre-Jolys and Miami, to 7.4 cm in Portage la Prairie, 7.6 cm in Woodlands, 12.2 cm in High Bluff, 12.4 cm in Argyle and 14.2 in Pinawa.
The snowfall amounts reported in Winnipeg might surprise some people, since it may look like less has accumulated, but that's because the ground is still warm from double-digit temperatures on Wednesday, said Hasel.
"Much of it melted," she said. "It took a while in some places for the snow to start to accumulate."
City of Winnipeg crews will be plowing snow from main routes as well as sidewalks and pathways based on the priority system, a spokesperson said.
Crews are also salting streets as needed.
