If you call, they won’t necessarily come to help, because they can’t.
That was the situation Wednesday night in southeast Saskatchewan after Saskatchewan RCMP issued an advisory at 8:30 p.m. saying that over the course of an hour they had received 50 calls asking for assistance because of road conditions. Driving conditions were deteriorating rapidly and vehicles, including semis, were stopping on the side of the highway in the southeast part of the province.
Officers responded to a collision between a semi and a charter bus in the east bound lane of Highway #1 just east of Sintaluta. Initial reports indicated that one male was seriously injured. Highway #1 was closed at the time and drivers were asked to not travel in the area.
Photo credit: Yad Pandher Facebook near Wolsley April 20
As of 6 p.m. Wednesday officers were on scene by Wolseley where two west-bound semis had jackknifed. Traffic in the west-bound lanes of Highway #1 was at a halt and RCMP said it would be delayed until the scene is cleared which could take several hours.
Photo credit: Amanda Pasternak Highway 16 Springside April 20
Drivers needing help from police, tow trucks, and/or other emergency services may experience delayed response times due to the extremely unsafe conditions. Anyone stuck in their vehicle is advised to stay in the vehicle with hazard lights on, conserve fuel and keep your tail pipe free of snow.
There are road closures and travel-not-recommended status which continues on many of the highways impacted by the worst of the weather system which hit Saskatchewan this week. RCMP ask motorists to check the roads not only from where you are leaving but also at your intended destination.
Between 5:40 pm and 9:20 p.m. last night, Saskatoon Police responded to 11 accidents in the city due to the state of the roads which are extremely slippery. The continuous snow fall in Saskatoon, which started Tuesday, has kept roads and sidewalks now with a layer of ice under the snow. The priority for city crews while it snows is to address icy conditions along Circle Drive and the highest speed streets, intersections and bridge decks by applying de-icing materials and plowing if the snow accumulates. Arterial streets and bus routes follow.
There are still winter storm and snowfall warnings for a significant portion of southeast Saskatchewan. If you draw a line from the U.S. border through Gravelbourg, Regina, up to Wadena as far as Hudson Bay, everything south and east of that is still under some kind of warning this morning. And Environment Canada is now saying it will take through till Friday for it to taper off with another 5 centimetres of snow expected.
