Winter storm shuts down multiple schools and highways in Manitoba
CBC News | Posted: March 4, 2024 1:28 PM | Last Updated: March 4
Brandon University among schools closed in the province on Monday
More than 15 school divisions in Manitoba are closed Monday as the tail end of a winter storm continues to whip through.
A low pressure system cutting across the province has brought strong winds and snowfall warnings to start the week.
The following school divisions are closed for the day:
- Beautiful Plains School Division.
- Border Land School Division.
- Brandon School Division.
- Evergreen School Division.
- Fort La Bosse School Division.
- Garden Valley School Division.
- Hanover School Division.
- Lakeshore School Division.
- Lord Selkirk School Division.
- Mennonite Collegiate Institute in Gretna.
- Pine Creek School Division.
- Prairie Rose School Division.
- Prairie Spirit School Division.
- Red River Valley School Division.
- Rolling River School Division.
- Seine River School Division.
- Southwest Horizon School Division.
Brandon University has also cancelled classes for Monday, and all provincial court sittings in Brandon have been cancelled.
Heavy snowfall began Sunday, and by Monday morning Brandon had received 29 centimetres, according to Environment Canada.
Other totals in southwestern Manitoba range from 21 to 24 cm, a spokesperson with the weather agency said.
The Red River Valley area, including Winnipeg, saw totals of five to 10 centimetres.
Central and some eastern parts of the province are continuing to get heavy snow on Monday with 10 to 15 centimetres expected by the time the system starts to abate in the late morning, according to Environment Canada's weather alert.
Winds will also continue to be strong before the system begins to move out, which means all of that fresh snow will be whipped around, reducing visibility at times.
Meanwhile almost all of southern Manitoba was under a blowing snow advisory through the early hours of Monday, which also caused reduced visibility. That advisory was lifted shortly before 7:30 a.m. as the system moved northeast into Ontario.
A number of highways remain closed due to poor driving conditions, primarily in western Manitoba.
Snow clearing underway in Winnipeg
Snow clearing crews have already started plowing roads in Winnipeg.
The order that streets, sidewalks and active transportation pathways will be tackled is based on the city's street priority system.
Winnipeggers can find out when their street is being cleared — and receive notifications about parking restrictions — by checking the city's website or contacting 311.
The winter route parking ban is also still in effect, which means there is no parking between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. on streets designated as winter routes.
Anyone parked in violation may be ticketed and towed.