Winter storm wreaks havoc across Canada, disrupting vacation travel By Health & Fitness Journal

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©Health & Fitness Journal. People arrive at Terminal 3 during a winter storm at Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, December 23, 2022. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio 2/5

By Ismail Shakil and Rod Nickel

OTTAWA/WINNIPEG (Health & Fitness Journal) – High winds, freezing rain and heavy snowfall closed schools, cut power to homes and canceled flights across Canada on Friday as a violent winter storm swept across the country, prompting authorities to warn people stay indoors before worsening conditions.

The storm is linked to the same freezing weather system that shrouded much of the United States ahead of the Christmas holiday weekend, thwarting travel plans and leaving more than a million homes and businesses without power.

The storm was expected to hit about two-thirds of all Canadians as it moves through Canada’s two most populous provinces, Ontario and Quebec, toward Atlantic Canada, said Toronto-based Environment Canada meteorologist Steve Flisfeder.

“Every winter we expect storms (but) this one is significant,” he said. “We’re seeing different types of weather, each resulting in different impacts… affecting a very large population base in a short period of time.”

Winter storms have increased in frequency and intensity over the past 70 years, according to the US Global Change Research Program. According to the Environmental Defense Fund, this is partly due to climate change, as the planet warms by evaporating more water into the atmosphere, resulting in more precipitation overall.

Canada’s second-largest airline, WestJet Airlines, proactively canceled all flights at airports in Toronto, Ottawa and the province of Quebec, citing inclement weather. The largest airline, Air Canada, also warned of delays and cancellations.

Nearly 320 flights, or about a third of all scheduled arrivals and departures on Friday, were canceled at Canada’s busiest airport, Toronto’s Pearson, with another 200 delayed, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.

Alberta, Canada’s main cattle province, has been warned of extreme cold by Environment Canada.

Some farmers positioned portable windbreaks and used forested areas to protect their herds from potentially deadly winds, said Karin Schmid, director of beef production and expansion at industry group Alberta Beef Producers.

Cold temperatures can kill cattle, but such deaths are rare, and Schmid said she was not aware of any this week.

In Ontario, stormy weather reduced the movement of cattle to feedlots and slaughterhouses, but the holiday season is slow anyway, said Jack Chaffe, who runs a 2,000-head feedlot.

The utility in Canada’s capital Ottawa said it has restored power to nearly 100,000 customers and is working to fix outages for 9,000 others. In Quebec, nearly 270,000 people were without power as of Friday afternoon.

Ontario Provincial Police Sergeant Kerry Schmidt said police had received reports of up to 100 vehicles involved in multiple collisions that shut down a major freeway near London, Ontario.

“The wind and snow are blowing in and today is going to be a tough day for many drivers,” Schmidt said in a video message posted to Twitter. “The best place is off the highway.”

In the Pacific province of British Columbia, the storm brought several inches of snow overnight before turning to freezing rain and ice pellets, forcing the closure of major bridges and roads.

Conditions there are expected to change further as temperatures rise and bring heavy rains throughout Saturday and into Sunday, said Terri Lang, an Environment Canada meteorologist who tracks western Canadian weather.

“It’s going to be a muddy, sloppy Christmas by the looks of it,” Lang said.