All school districts in Winnipeg have announced that they are canceling school buses for Wednesday and Thursday in anticipation of bad weather and road conditions.
The blizzard that is expected to hit southern Manitoba starting on Tuesday night and will last for three days, pushed the heads of the six school districts of Winnipeg to meet on Tuesday morning. No decision has yet been made to cancel the school.
Closing schools is not a trivial decision, so it has not happened in Winnipeg since April 7, 1997, said Ted Frances, inspector of the Pembina Trails school.
This happened after a snowstorm hit the city with 48 cm of snow, which eventually led to the Flood of the Century.
“Schools are an important, integral part of the fabric of society. Our families depend on a reliable, trustworthy place for students to be present during the day,” said Fransen.
“Principals across the country, across the country, are working really hard to balance the need to be at school with, of course, the safety of students and bus drivers.”
The departments rely heavily on Winnipeg Transit for students in grades 7 to 12, so if the city’s buses close, schools are likely to close as well, Fransen said.
“That would be an important factor,” he said.
“We are in contact with Winnipeg Transit and are closely monitoring the meteorological system and will make an announcement no later than tomorrow morning at 6 am and possibly even this afternoon.”
This does not necessarily mean that students will have one day off at school, however. Staff and students are well aware of distance education now, thanks to the two years of COVID-19, Fransen said.
“We tell our teachers to take their laptops home and we also tell our headquarters staff to bring their laptops home,” he said.
“We thought we should make use of what we learned during COVID… and we could make the most of this situation.”
Otherwise, other school departments are preparing for the storm.
The Portage La Prairie School Department announced in a letter to students, staff and parents that it is closing all schools and bus services on Wednesday and Thursday.
Environment Canada on Tuesday upgraded its alerts from winter storm clock to storm and snowstorm warnings.
He also reiterated a warning against travel, saying “this storm has the potential to be the worst blizzard in decades.”
People are advised to be provided with the necessary supplies and medicines and to be prepared for extensive power outages – especially in rural areas.
“Wide closure of highways [are] an almost certainty. “Until Wednesday afternoon, even travel within communities may be impossible,” the meteorological service said in a statement.
The following is a model simulation of how the upcoming winter storm is expected to develop over the next two days. The model is 3km NAM from today to Thu.The snow (blue) enters srn MB this afternoon and increases during the night. Snow may fall over RRV / SE MB later Wednesday before pick-up on Thursday pic.twitter.com/M6IYnR2PMH
– @ robsobs
Manitoba Hydro has put all its personnel in the storm zone – from first-line hydroelectric workers to IT staff and workers – on the lookout for what they may need.
CAA Manitoba is restoring staff on holiday and placing more staff in call centers to handle demand from drivers who may need help during the storm.
“I’ve looked at a few different models surrounding the storm of ’97, and it looks a lot like that. And it fell 48cm in Winnipeg and up to 80cm in parts of southern Manitoba,” said CBC Manitoba meteorologist John Sauder.
The forecast predicts extensive snowfall of 30-50 cm and strong north winds, giving occasional zero visibility.
It will start early Tuesday afternoon near the U.S. border and then push north during the night.
By Wednesday morning, heavy snow will fall in much of the area as the storm continues to push north, Environment Canada says.
Conditions will begin to improve on Friday as winds weaken and heavier snow moves to northern Ontario.
Winnipeg and areas in the north, east and southeast are warned of storms, with winds expected to blow at 60-70 km / h. A break in the snow can come Wednesday afternoon or afternoon before intensifying again overnight towards Thursday.
“Everything will calm down a bit [on Wednesday], and then people will go, ‘Is that it? “It’s done,” Sauder said.
“But it is not. The second wave will move on Thursday with winds almost as strong and snow stronger.”
A total of 15-20 cm is likely by Wednesday afternoon with another 15-20 cm being added during this second wave from Wednesday night to Friday morning.
Areas west and southwest of Winnipeg are subject to a snowstorm warning that wind gusts could reach 70-90 km with a total snowfall of 30-50 cm by Friday morning.
Even during the calmest season, without winds blowing and blowing snow around, there could be liming conditions due to heavy snowfall, Sauder said.
Accumulations of up to 80 cm in height are possible along areas of higher ground, such as the western part of the Red River Valley, Riding Mountain and Turtle Mountain.
