Roads closed, events cancelled as this year looks a lot like January, 2014

For the second day since the end of Christmas break, roads were closed, schools were closed, and events were cancelled, all due to blowing and drifting snow causing zero visibility on area roadways.
Among the events cancelled, is Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson's New Year's Levee, which was scheduled for tomorrow night in Teeswater. It will now be held Wednesday, Jan. 14. See the Kincardine Record's "Advertising" page for details.
This winter is starting to look a lot like last winter when, for the first time in many years, the Kincardine area was hit with a deluge of snow, resulting in all roads in Kincardine being closed for several days.
January, 2015, is shaping up to look much the same. However, unlike last year, residents were enjoying the absence of snow throughout December, 2014, despite cold temperatures.
So, how bad was January, 2014?
It hit Monday, Jan. 6, 2014, with heavy snowfall and high wind, along with a blast of Arctic air, which combined to wreak havoc on the Kincardine area, just as the holiday season was coming to a close. School closures and bus cancellations were the norm, as a blizzard blanketed the area with blowing and drifting snow.

Highway 21, from Goderich to Port Elgin, was closed all day, and by mid-morning both the Huron-Kinloss and Kincardine municipal offices were closed. Many events and programs were cancelled.

But the worst was yet to come, as even more snow fell throughout the day, the wind picked up, and the temperature dropped, causing hazardous conditions for motorists and dangerous conditions for those working, playing or walking outside.

By Monday night, Huron County OPP had closed ALL county roadways and provincial highways in Huron County. Police urged all motorists to stay off the closed roads, and to check weather and road travel conditions by calling 511 or on-line at www.Ontario.ca/trip for up-to-date road conditions for provincially-maintained highways.



Tuesday, Jan. 7, the Kincardine area was still in the grip of a major blizzard that closed all roadways into the municipality and brought most activities to a halt. For the second day in a row, schools were closed, buses were cancelled, and the OPP closed all provincial highways and secondary roads in Bruce, Grey, Huron and Perth counties because they were considered impassable. This was the first time in about 30 years that all roadways had been closed due to such a severe snowstorm.

Bruce Power asked all Category A, B and C workers not to report to work. However, Category A staff were to continue to monitor conditions closely to determine when they would be expected to travel to the site. All buses to and from Port Elgin and Kincardine were temporarily suspended.
Wednesday, Jan. 8, for the third day in a row, all roads into Kincardine were closed while snowplow operators worked to clear the the roadways - in some places the snow drifts were as high as six to 10 feet. South Bruce OPP and Huron County OPP worked with the snowplow crews, as numerous abandoned vehicles also littered the roads.

By Wednesday afternoon, some area roads had been re-opened, including Highway 9 and several county roads. However, Highway 21 remained closed from Port Elgin to Goderich. In Kincardine, all the schools were closed, most offices were closed, and the majority of events and activities were cancelled once more, including the Kincardine council meeting.
The Blizzard of 2014 hit again at the end of January.
Saturday, Jan. 25, Kincardine residents woke up to heavy drifts of snow, blanketing vehicles and driveways. Snow and high wind hit Friday morning, causing road closures and leaving motorists stranded by mid-afternoon and evening.

Highway 9, from Kincardine to Walkerton, was the first to close Friday at 11:30 a.m., and remained closed while road crews continue to clear it. Highway 21, from Kincardine to Port Elgin, was closed by Friday at noon, and eventually other roads followed.

By Friday night, all roads in Bruce and Huron counties were closed and plows had been removed, due to blowing and drifting snow, and poor to nil visibility.

As of 4 p.m. Saturday, Bruce County Road 23 (B-line) had been re-opened from Kincardine to Bruce County Road 15 and then north on the Tie Road to Bruce Power, for Bruce Power workers. All other Bruce County roads remained closed, as did Highway 21, from Amberley to Port Elgin.

Monday, Jan. 27, the Blizzard of 2014 took another round out of the Kincardine area as major roads were closed for a third day. After all roads in Bruce and Huron counties were closed Friday and Saturday, there was a brief reprieve Sunday as almost all of the roads were opened by mid-morning. However, by early Monday morning, high wind caused blowing and drifting snow, cancelling school buses and closing roads and some schools in the area.

As of 7 p.m., Monday, Highway 21 remained closed, from Southampton to Amberley; Bruce County Road 86 was closed, from Amberley to Wingham; Bruce County Road 23 (B-line) was closed, from Kincardine to Bruce County Road 20; and Bruce County Road 13 was closed, from Highway 21 to Sauble Beach; all due to snow squalls and poor to nil visibility.

Not only was there disruption on the roadways and at schools, but the municipal offices in Kincardine and Huron-Kinloss were closed for the day. Also, garbage pick-up for the Monday collection areas in Kincardine and Huron-Kinloss was cancelled.

Tuesday, Jan. 28, In what was turning into a broken record for the Kincardine area, school buses were cancelled, roads were closed, and some schools were also closed, as blizzard conditions persisted in the Kincardine area.

High wind continued to cause blowing and drifting snow and zero visibility, resulting in the continued closure of Highway 21, from Amberley to Port Elgin, and eventually all the way to Springmount, just south of Owen Sound. That section of roadway remained closed Tuesday night. Highway 9 was also closed, from Kincardine to Walkerton.

Bruce County Road 23 (B-line) was closed for most of the day but later re-opened. However, the following county roads remained closed: Bruce Road 86, from Lucknow to Amberley; Bruce Road 3, from Highway 9 Mildmay to Highway 21; Bruce Road 10, from Alvanley to Hepworth; Bruce Road 8, from Hepworth to Sauble Beach; and the Grey-Bruce Line, from Scone to Alvanley.

Besides the continued disruption for motorists and schools, waste pick-up was cancelled for the second day in a row, in Kincardine and Huron-Kinloss, due to the inclement weather. Also, the Kincardine municipal office remained closed due to the closure of Highway 21 and the B-line.
Wednesday, Jan. 29, roads in the Kincardine area, particularly Highway 21, had been closed more than they were open in the past week. Since Jan. 1, the roads had been closed a total of eight days, including the three-day blizzard, Jan. 6-8.

As of Wednesday at 8 p.m., Highway 21 was closed, from Amberley to Goderich, and from Kincardine to Springmount (just south of Owen Sound); and Highway 9 was closed, from Kincardine to Walkerton.

Thursday, Jan. 30, traffic was on the move as a few more roads were open in the Kincardine area and the sun was shining.

However, Highway 21, from Kincardine to Port Elgin, remained closed, causing yet another day of school bus cancellations. This stretch of highway has been closed for almost a week.

Students at Kincardine District Secondary School had lost an entire week of school, given that Friday (Jan. 31) was a Professional Activity Day and there was no school for students in the Bluewater District School Board. Exams at KDSS were rescheduled to Monday to Wednesday, Feb. 3-5, with the second semester beginning Thursday, Feb. 6

While plows worked hard to keep roads in Bruce County open, by Thursday evening, the persistent southwest wind had caused blowing and drifting snow, and many of those roads were closed again.

As of 8:32 p.m., the South Bruce OPP had closed the following roads due to blowing snow and poor to nil visibility:

• Highway 21, from Kincardine to Springmount (just south of Owen Sound)

• Highway 9, from Kincardine to Walkerton

• Bruce County Road 86, from Highway 21 to Lucknow

• Bruce County Road 3, from Mildmay to Highway 9

• Bruce County Road 15, from Highway 21 to Bruce Count Road 3

The Bruce County roads department had pulled its snowplows off the roads for the night due to poor visibility throughout the county.


 

And finally, another major storm hit at the end of February.
Feb. 27, for the third time this year, the Kincardine area was cut off by road closures, as high wind and blowing snow caused zero visibility on highways and county roads.

The snowstorm hit around 6:45 a.m. and within 15 minutes, the South Bruce OPP had closed Highway 21 from Southampton to Amberley, as well as a number of Bruce County roads in the area of Kincardine, Paisley, Southampton and Port Elgin, including Bruce County Road 23 (B-line) from Kincardine to Bruce Road 15.

By 8 a.m., Highway 9 from Kincardine to Walkerton was also closed. It was opened briefly later in the morning, but closed again in the afternoon. 

Also by 8 a.m., Highway 21 was closed from Jackson (west of Owen Sound) to Bayfield. By 2 p.m., all Bruce County roads were declared closed, except for Bruce Road 4 between Walkerton and Hanover. At 8:25 a.m., Huron County OPP had closed all provincial highways, county roadways and township roads within Huron County.

As of 9 p.m., all Bruce County roads south of Highway 21, between Southampton and Allenford, remained closed, except for Bruce Road 33 and Bruce Road 4 between Walkerton and Hanover.

Highway 21 from Kincardine to Southampton, and Highway 9 from Kincardine to Walkerton, remained closed.