Northerners wish the weather was an April Fool's Day joke
Many in the northeast looked outside their windows Saturday morning to find that the weather was certainly no April Fool's Day joke.
Upwards of 30cm fell in some parts of our CTV Northern Ontario broadcast region – Greater Sudbury at one point saw peak snowfall rates of 8 centimetres an hour.
In just a few short hours, many northerners were forced to deal with what seems to have been one of the biggest storms of the season.
Heavy snow combined with high winds reduced visibility and created dangerous travel conditions.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
In Sault Ste. Marie, the storm started early and gradually made its way across the Highway 17 corridor – closing parts of the Trans-Canada and Highway 11.
The winter weather was so blustery – the snow so heavy – transit for a time was kept off the roads in the Sault.
"All crews, all available plows, sanders and graders are out on the road,” said Susan Hamilton-Beach, Sault Ste. Marie’s director of Public Works.
“It's certainly been slow going with sidewalks for instance, it's just such a heavy, wet snow at this time of year."
Hamilton-Beach said the city focused on the main arteries and they are hoping to get into residential areas sometime overnight.
Officials in the Sault asked people to stay home – even the snow removal equipment had some trouble across the region – trying not to get stuck.
"We had the one blast over the Christmas season but this is certainly an extreme event,” said Hamilton-Beach.
“(I am) very glad that we declared a significant event to hopefully provide drivers an advance warning, to buckle down, stay home."
It was much of the same in Sudbury, which also declared a significant weather event.
"It's mostly due to the rapid fall of snow, there were heavy winds that was causing drifting on the roads,” said Brittany Hallam, Greater Sudbury’s director of Linear Services.
“As well as a lot of heavy snow because of the milder weather so it's a little harder for the plows to push."
CTV News invited viewers to send us images of what they saw outside and tell us their weather stories Saturday – from Sault Ste. Marie to Sudbury, Elliot Lake to Blind River – we received images of covered walks, buried vehicles – roads left impassable.
"You know we're out there, we're working but if you don't have to go out, maybe just stay home,” said Hallam.
“You might not see the roads in the condition that you would normally see them."
Municipal officials in the impacted areas said all of this snow is going to take a little while to clear. Once main arteries are cleared plows will be able to move in to address residential neighbourhoods.
The next concern will be ensuring catch basins are cleared as temperatures are expected to reach highs near 7 °C by midweek.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP motion regarding Palestinian statehood passes after major Liberal alterations
A motion from the federal New Democrats initially calling on Canada to recognize the 'State of Palestine' passed amid widespread acrimony on Monday, after the Liberals drastically altered its wording to see the government simply work towards that aim as part of a two-state solution.
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.