Highway driving hindered by snow across entire region
By COLLIN GALLANT on October 1, 2019.
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant Traffic snarls continued on major highways on Monday afternoon. A noon-hour accident on the westbound Trans-Canada near Brooks ground traffic to a halt one day after the RCMP recommended against travel on the covered highway in whiteout conditions. North of Medicine Hat, snow-covered conditions persisted Monday east of Broods, on Highway No. 36, north of Brooks, on Highway No. 9, in the Special Areas, and Highway 41, north of the South Saskatchewan River crossing, as well as Highway 41 south of Elkwater. In Saskatchewan, most major highways in the southwest reported as winter driving conditions, including the Trans-Canada. Heavy snow, icy patches and drifting snow, led to a recommendation against highway travel on Nos. 13 and 18, south of the Cypress Hills, as well, Highway 44, which connects Highway 21, north of Leader, to Alsask. In Montana, Highway 23 from Wild Horse port to Havre was considered partially snow and ice covered by noon on Monday, while major east-west portions of Interstate 2 featured slush. Reports from the town two hours south of Medicine Hat stated accumulation to Monday morning measured 12.5 inches (31.5 cms), while the temperatures remained near the freezing point. No major disruptions were reported. Great Falls set a two-day record for snow in September with 19.3 inches arriving on Saturday and Sunday. The state declared a state of winter storm emergency in western areas and National Weather Service officials stated that satellite images revealed that snow accumulation in some northern parts of the state totalled 52 inches. Precipitation in Canada is recorded water volume of melted snow. The figure for Onefour was 20 millimetres, about double that of Bow Island and one-third more than Medicine Hat. 12-11
