High winds, blowing snow and freezing temperatures made for a traffic nightmare today on many Nova Scotia roads.
Traffic was backed up for hours in some places as snow plows scrambled to keep up with Mother Nature.
“I was nervous, absolutely,” says Dartmouth motorist Mong-Diep MacDuff. “We were in the car together and I had white knuckles.”
With traffic at a crawl along Halifax-area highways and streets, many motorists were running behind schedule.
“It was very slow going and slippery, but we got through it,” says motorist Frank Di Francescantonio.
Police also responded to a slew of accidents; there were 22 collisions in the Halifax area alone. Fortunately, no serious injuries were reported.
“It’s just ice. It’s really slick underneath the snow,” says delivery truck driver Chris Day. “There’s not a lot of traction at all. Everybody’s doing 30, 40.”
According to Gordon Hayward, HRM’s Winter Works superintendent, 80 plows had been out on Halifax roads by the end of the day.
“Yes, it’s been a very busy day.”
One of the main challenges for snow removal crews was the extreme cold. Hayward says it’s unusual to get snow when temperatures are so low.
“Salt is about nine times less effective at -12 than it is at zero,” he says.
Snowy weather also closed schools in western parts of the province and in the South Shore Regional School Board.
In Cape Breton, heavy snow and slick roads closed schools in some parts of the Island.
There was no snow in New Brunswick, but there were bitter cold temperatures and biting wind chills.
The Port of Saint John was a sea of smoke Friday morning – a scene only spotted on the coldest of days. With the wind chill, it felt like -29 Celsius in the Port City.
Moncton residents also bundled up to avoid temperatures that felt like -25 Celsius.
More snow is expected to fall across the Maritimes this weekend.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Garreth MacDonald
