Storm and cold cause chaos

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The wind blew in a lot of chaos on Southeast highways Jan. 17, with multi-vehicle pile-ups scattered throughout the region.

Highway 12 was the largest, with dozens of cars, trucks and semis smashed together on the road and in the ditch in whiteout conditions. The Ste Anne Fire Department responded and brought the injured to Ste Anne Hospital and Bethesda Regional Health Centre in Steinbach where a code orange was called to prepare medical staff for a large influx of patients.

There were 725 claims from Friday, with most likely related to the storm, made to Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) as of Wednesday. That includes 44 from Steinbach, 23 from Ste Anne, and 15 from Blumenort, the three most affected by the pile-up on Highway 12. MPI’s media and public relations lead Tara Seel said she expects those number to continue to climb.

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Traffic on Highway 52 on the east edge of Steinbach is closed for four hours after a pile-up Jan. 17. La Broquerie Fire Department set up a command centre as the injured were taken to hospital and crews cleaned up.
submitted Traffic on Highway 52 on the east edge of Steinbach is closed for four hours after a pile-up Jan. 17. La Broquerie Fire Department set up a command centre as the injured were taken to hospital and crews cleaned up.

Highway 52 was closed on the eastern edge of Steinbach after a pile-up of about 14 vehicles caused seven people to require medical treatment.

Highway 23 in De Salaberry was closed when St Malo Fire Department responded to a 15-vehicle pile-up. The department posted what it was like on its Facebook page: “Many of us are calling it the most adverse conditions we have ever worked in. We are so thankful nobody, including ourselves, were injured.”

And that may be the biggest news for the hundreds stranded in the whiteout: nobody was seriously injured in the Southeast despite so many collisions.

“First responders including EMS, RCMP and the Ste Anne Fire Department worked together to triage passengers and assist those in need of medical attention. All injuries reported at Hôpital Ste-Anne Hospital and Bethesda Regional Health Centre as a result of the Highway 12 pile-up were minor,” wrote a Southern Health spokesperson.

La Broquerie fire chief JC Normandeau said the injuries on the Highway 52 pile-up were also minor.

The day was not without tragedy. Oakbank RCMP, Springfield Fire & Rescue, the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service and Emergency Medical Services responded to a seven-vehicle pile-up on the TransCanada Highway between the Plessis Road and Perimeter Highway bridges before 9:45 a.m.

A 30-year-old female driver of one of the vehicles, from Winnipeg, was pronounced deceased on scene. Officers believe she was struck by another vehicle when she exited her own. There were no other serious injuries reported.

Chief Normandeau described the conditions as he and his crew of 16 La Broquerie fire fighters responded to the Highway 52 scene.

“It happened so quick. Tried to man the scene outside, and with the wind and snow it was unachievable so we relocated the command post inside one of our vehicles, which was a lot better to coordinate.

“But the chaos, it’s unimaginable but in this case with no fatalities it’s always nicer. Things ran fairly smooth despite the situation,” said Normandeau.

After arriving around 10 a.m. and helping the injured during the first 30 minutes of chaos, the chief said his crew were in and out of their vehicles to assess, report, and keep warm in sustained winds of 60 km/h and gusts of up to 100 km/h.

The firefighters were on scene for three-and-a-half hours, and the highway was closed for about four hours.

“We were not going to leave the vehicles on the side of the road due to future danger, and also with the blowing snow it would have created some pretty nasty snowdrifts on the road,” said Normandeau.

The Province closed most highways in southern Manitoba after the pile-ups. Emergency alerts went out on people’s cell phones in the afternoon, when skies had started to clear and the wind gusts were less blustery.

La Vérendrye MLA and PC critic for Transportation Konrad Narth was not pleased with the NDP government’s response.

“The response from Minister Lisa Naylor and the Kinew government to this morning’s whiteout conditions is appalling,” stated Narth.

“Dangerous accidents and pile-ups started early this morning yet the province didn’t issue an emergency alert until the afternoon warning drivers to stay off the road. This notification needed to be sent out first thing this morning when whiteout conditions had already started to impact morning commutes, not hours after dozens of crashes already took place.

“Emergency alerts need to be issued sooner to prevent injuries and the loss of life. This government needs to get its act together to protect Manitobans.”

Most school buses turned around

All Southeast school divisions thought they could get kids to school Friday morning before the wind blew in. All except Sunrise School Division turned their buses around and issued alerts to parents around 8 a.m. that school was cancelled.

Sunrise apologized for its decision in a statement from superintendent Trevor Reid:

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A La Broquerie firefighter in the punishing wind on Highway 52 on the east edge of Steinbach where a pile-up forced its closure for four hours Jan. 17.
submitted A La Broquerie firefighter in the punishing wind on Highway 52 on the east edge of Steinbach where a pile-up forced its closure for four hours Jan. 17.

“In hindsight this decision was clearly not the correct one, and we sincerely apologize for the impact this had on families.

“For background, when the decision was made before 6 a.m., road conditions were clear. We were aware of the blizzard warning, but unfortunately we misjudged the timing of its arrival and underestimated the speed at which conditions would worsen. As the weather began to change rapidly many students were already on their way to school, and the decision was made to keep schools open to safely receive them. Once at school, we would be able to account for students and in turn plan for a safe return home at the end of the day. For many the return home ended up being earlier than expected and relied on families arranging transportation for their children. We appreciate your efforts on this.

“We understand unexpected school closures create challenges for families who rely on a predictable schedule. As always, we try and balance this with the need to ensure student safely, thus school closure decisions are taken seriously and are rarely easy to make. We thank families for their understanding and support on what was a challenging day and again we would like to sincerely apologize for the impacts of this decision.”

Sunrise schools stretch from Powerview in the north to Dugald and Anola in the south. The Dugald catchment area’s western edge is on the TransCanada where Friday’s only storm-related fatality occurred.

DSFM French schools were open but buses were cancelled Friday.

Hanover, Seine River, Red River Valley, and Borderland notified parents they would not be transporting kids to school around 8 a.m. The lateness of the notification was acknowledged by superintendents in letters to parents.

“While today’s decision aligned with our school closure policy, we acknowledge the importance of timely communication and regret the delay,” wrote Hanover superintendent Joe Thiessen at the end of his letter explaining their reversal of the decision to keep schools open.

“We will review our decision-making and communication processes to ensure they are as timely and effective as possible. Your understanding and patience as we navigate unpredictable weather are greatly appreciated. The safety of our students and staff will always remain our top priority.”

Schools were also closed across the Southeast Monday after the Friday winds brought in a deep freeze that lasted several days and produced windchills of minus 45. DSFM was the only division to again chose to keep schools open but cancel buses.

Public works still working

Not everyone got a snow day Friday or a cold day Monday.

Steinbach garbage and recycling was still picked up. And while people were going around barricades, crashing and clogging up Park Road, Steinbach public works manager Randy Reimer said crews were digging people out.

He said crews started the day around 7 a.m. trying to keep roads driveable, especially on the outskirts. But then the wind started to pick up around 8:30 a.m.

“The wind picked up so bad that we couldn’t even be out plowing a whole lot. We did a bit of hauling and sanding in town, but Park Road where it was probably the worst place in town at Industrial corner, people started driving in there and getting stuck,” described Reimer.

Emergency crews responded. Public works crews helped some of them get unstuck.

“We waited until the afternoon and the winds subsided to get in there. There was an ambulance stuck in there too.

“So we got in there with a loader, opened up the road enough to get tow trucks loading vehicles,” said Reimer.

He added that crews worked diligently to clear roads and sidewalks before the weekend for anyone who dared venture outside.

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