With yet another blast of winter forecasted for the region, Maritimers getting set for March Break are now preparing for blizzard-like conditions.
Snow, strong winds and blowing snow are expected to begin over mainland Nova Scotia on Saturday night or early Sunday morning, with some areas expected to get 20 cm of snow or more.
CTV Atlantic meteorologist Cindy Day said Moncton and Eastern P.E.I. will be among the hardest hit areas, with 20-25 cm of snow forecasted for both areas.
Halifax, Saint John and Fredericton are expected to get 15-20 cm of snow.
With one of the busiest travel periods of the year set to kick off as March Break begins next week, many Maritimers are hoping they’ll be able to escape before the forecasted Nor’easter takes hold.
All the major airlines are expected to issue travel advisories early Saturday morning, and many of them are letting passengers change their flight without the usual fee.
“Airlines are watching the weather and they will adjust schedules accordingly, whether that be trying to get people out in advance of the storm,” said Ashley Gallant, spokesperson for Halifax Stanfield International Airport.
“They're getting really good with letting passengers know about delays and cancellations, so people aren't going out here and maybe being stranded,” she said.
Though getting out before this latest storm may be a gamble, it’s one many Maritimers are willing to take in order to escape to warmer climes.
“We're heading to Las Vegas and I'm very happy to get out — we want to goto the sun and heat,” said one air traveller heading out of Halifax on Friday.
The weekend storm is expected to impact road travel as well, and getting to the airport could be as tough as flying out of it.
It’s a risk many air travellers have opted to avoid, some airport hotels were already fully booked as of Friday.
In Saint John, preparations are underway for another dose of the winter that saw crews remove 34,000 truckloads of snow from neighbourhoods — roughly eight times the amount of snow they would move in an average season.
“Based on 320 cm over a five-week period, that’s not something we’ve encountered before,” said Kevin Rice, Saint John’s deputy commissioner of municipal operations.
On Friday, city crews were repairing and preparing their equipment for what’s coming.
“Typically, St. Patrick’s Day or somewhere around there, there’s always a storm. Every year. So we expect it, we’re ready for it,” said Rice.
The City of Saint John reports that 90 per cent of its equipment is in working order, despite this winter’s workload.
On Friday afternoon, the city received a shipment of 30 tonnes of road salt, to boost their supplies in preparation.
For ice fishermen in Renforth, N.B., ice has turned from friend to foe.
Would-be anglers there are spending their time trying to remove ice-encased fishing shacks from the lakes.
“We want to be ahead of the game,” said fisherman John Merrick.
“Some will be hard-pressed to get them off. Some won’t even get them off, I imagine.”
In Halifax, organizers of the CIS University Cup scheduled for this weekend are saying the show will go on.
While the players are safely there, there is concern volunteers and fans will have trouble getting to the game.
But Chris Larson, the championship’s general manager, says the weather threat isn’t a big worry.
“The storm is not of that magnitude that it would cause any concern about cancellation,” he said.
But it is leaving winter-weary Maritimers wondering if this will finally be the season’s last gasp.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Mike Cameron and Marie Adsett
