Stay off roads, RCMP in Saskatchewan advise

Saskatchewan's first big blast of winter weather created hazardous conditions on the roads Tuesday, with fender-benders and cars in ditches being common sights.

"Travel is not recommended in the southern half of the province, due to icy roads and reduced visibility," RCMP said early Tuesday evening. "If you have to travel, check the weather conditions in your area and drive appropriately for the road conditions."

According to RCMP, the winter weather had already produced 40 motor vehicle crashes, including rollovers and vehicles sliding into ditches.

"So far there have been no serious injuries," police said, adding their dispatch centre was busy handling calls from motorists.

Police said they had handled five calls Tuesday where semi-trailer units had jackknifed on slippery roads and crashed. RCMP did not provide specific locations for the crashes but said three were on the Trans-Canada Highway and two on Highway 16, also known as the Yellowhead Highway.

The wintry weather arrived overnight and many people woke up to snow Tuesday morning, especially in southeast areas. The storm continued through the day, leaving sloppy roads across the southern half of the province.

In Saskatoon, police were called to 21 accidents over three hours starting at 6 a.m. CST.

Regina started off with just a skiff of snow in the morning and only two accidents, but gusting winds made conditions unpleasant and roads were slippery.

Environment Canada issued weather and snowfall warnings over a wide area in Saskatchewan from Humboldt to the U.S. and Manitoba borders.

Areas west of Saskatoon were getting between one and two centimetres Tuesday, with winds gusting as high as 70 kilometres an hour.

Driving, especially in the southeast, was treacherous, with drifting snow and reduced visibility on some highways, according to the Saskatchewan Highways Hotline.

In the Wynyard area, in the east-central part of the province, several vehicles ended up in the ditch and were waiting for tows for as long as 90 minutes, the RCMP said.

The good news, according to Environment Canada meteorologist Albert Skiba, is there's a good chance the snow will disappear before long. "It'll die off overnight and you might see a few flakes again tomorrow, but after that a big ridge of high pressure builds in," he said.

While summery temperatures aren't expected, there will be a warming trend into the weekend, he said. "Sunny skies and temperatures, oh, around 10 degrees for Halloween Sunday," Skiba predicted.