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Wind chill warning issued as temperatures drop sharply By Joel van der Veen DAVIDSON—A wind chill warning was issued throughout southern Saskatchewan last Wednesday, as westerly winds combined with bitterly cold Arctic air to create wind chill values in the -40˚C to -49˚C range. The extreme weather resulted in the cancellation of school bus service across the region. Buses in Davidson, Kenaston and Loreburn were cancelled from Tuesday to Thursday; on Wednesday they were joined by the schools in Craik, Hanley and Dundurn. Most of the buses were running again by Friday. The warning issued by Environment Canada early Wednesday morning took effect throughout The Davidson Leader's coverage area, including the communities of Davidson, Girvin, Elbow, Loreburn, Hawarden, Kenaston, Bladworth, Hanley, Imperial, Liberty, Craik, Aylesbury and Dundurn, as well as Blackstrap Provincial Park. The extreme wind chill conditions were expected to last from Wednesday to Thursday. The ministry warned that in these circumstances, frostbite can occur on exposed skin in less than 10 minutes. According to the ministry news release, the temperature was expected to moderate slightly at the end of the week, due to a low pressure system approaching from the west. By Saturday, the ministry predicted, temperatures would return to single digits over most of Saskatchewan with storm conditions pushing in snow and milder temperatures from the southwest. Colder temperatures were also partly to blame for a slew of traffic collisions over the weekend of Jan. 14 and 15. From Friday afternoon to Monday morning, a total of 42 collisions were reported across the province, according to a press release from RCMP media relations officer Sgt. Paul Dawson. Of these, four resulted in injury, 23 were reported as property damage, and 15 were reported as minor property damage. Almost half of the collisions occurred on Jan. 14. Police are reminding motorists to drive according to current highway and weather conditions. Drivers are advised to phone the Highway Hotline at 933-8333 (in the Saskatoon area) or check road conditions online at highways.gov.sk.ca/road-conditions before heading out. The leaderonline is a division of The Davidson Leader, Davidson, Saskatchewan, Canada. |