Snowmobilers urged to stay off closed parts of T'Railway

The provincial minister of environment and conservation is asking snowmobilers not to use closed sections of the T'Railway Provincial Park.

Perry Trimper said the remnants of Hurricane Matthew  in October 2016 caused more damage to the trail than Hurricane Igor in 2010.

"In terms of public access and safety we are asking folks to still respect the fact that we have 180 kilometres plus these other areas listed closed right now," he said on Monday.

A section from Badger to Gander and another area near Port Blandford will remain closed all winter. Last week, a bridge collapse on a branch line also closed a section from Buchans to Buchans Junction.

Trimper said there are dozens of areas where the popular snowmobiling and ATV trail is unsafe.

"We've got some 38 areas of washout and serious damage that have been assessed," he said.

An engineering company has been contracted to report on the damage.

"We are waiting for them to finalize that report. Then I want to go out and meet with stakeholders," Trimper said.

Can feel the frustration

He said estimates are beginning to come in, and he believes damages will cost "many hundreds of thousands of dollars."

Once a thorough assessment is done, the province will apply for help under the federal disaster relief program.

"Given that we are eligible we will be able to recover the majority of the costs that we incur."

Trimper said there is pressure to open as much of the trail as possible, but some sections are not safe to use.

"What you will run into is 38 to 50 serious washouts, that, frankly, you cannot pass," he said. "Encountering those and thinking everything is safe — you could hurt yourself very badly."

Snow covers up a lot of the damage. "People are looking at it and saying 'that is not that bad, I can get through there'," but people are getting stuck.

A snowmobiler himself, Trimper said he can feel the frustration.

"We are asking for a little bit more patience."