New Brunswick

New Brunswick weather: Blizzard hits province

Police in parts of New Brunswick are advising people to stay home and off the roads Sunday as a blizzard hits the province.

Police urge people to stay home as whiteout conditions create danger

A blizzard bringing heavy snow and high winds forced the closure of several roads in southeastern New Brunswick Sunday.

Major highways in and out of Moncton were shut down due to poor visibility at the height of the storm.

Serveral highways and roads in southeastern New Brunswick closed due to blizzard conditions, as well as the Rothesay Avenue interchange on Highway 1 in Saint John. (N.B. Transportation Department 511 service)

The highway closures included:

  • Highway 2 from Moncton to the Nova Scotia border.
  • Highway 11, from Shediac to Kouchibouguac.
  • Highway 15, from Moncton to Shediac.
  • Highway 15 from Shediac to Port Elgin
  • Highway 16, from Aulac to Cape Tormentine.
  • Highway 116 from Big Forks to Rexton.
  • Route 126 from Moncton to Rogersville.

Meanwhile, a multi-vehicle pileup on Highway 1 in Saint John closed the highway between Lorneville and Prince of Wales.

​Environment Canada has most of the province under a blizzard warning, with up to 40 centimetres of snow possible in some areas.

New Brunswick's Emergency Measures Organization said blizzard conditions are expected to last all day and advised people to stay home if possible.

A storm surge warning has been posted for Kent County. Environment Canada says winds will produce strong ice pressure along the coast tonight, possibly causing ice pile-up and elevated water levels along the north-to-east facing coastline.

CBC meteoroligist Kalin Mitchell reported in midafternoon Sunday that Moncton and Fredericton had received 29 centimetres of snow by that point while Saint John had received 20.

Moderate snowfall and blowing snow was reported in all three cities at the time.

Bathurst was reporting heavy snow and drifting show, with four centimetres fallen by that time.

No travel advisories

RCMP and municipal police forces in Saint John and Fredericton were urging people to stay off the roads and streets.

"Nothing is that important today," said Sgt. Dave Cowan.

Travel was not being advised on the Trans-Canada Highway between Longs Creek and Moncton, said Ross Mathers of Maritime Road Development Corporation, which operates the highway for the province.

The RCMP said Brun-way was advising people not to travel on the Trans-Canada between Longs Creek and Grand Falls.

An advisory not to travel was also in place for Route 1 from St. Stephen through Saint John to Moncton.

Snow plows returned to the streets of Saint John Sunday afternoon after being pulled off the roads for a time in the morning. However, officials took them off the streets once again in the afternoon due to reduced visibility.

Dozens of church service cancellations were being reported at CBC's Storm Centre. Most retailers closed in Fredericton, Moncton and Saint John, although there were exceptions.

One of the many cancellations due to the storm was, ironically, Winterfest — an outdoor celebration of winter activities in Fredericton.

"Shovelfest is still on," quipped This Hour Has 22 Minutes on Twitter.

"This much of a storm definitely is a problem," said John Antworth, the president of Winterfest. "We have said goodbye to 2015 just because it's too hard on the animals, our visitors, our volunteers would have a difficulty getting home, so the decision was made."