Jackknifed trucks snarl QEW as Burlington digs out from heavy snow

The wintry mess has made travelling local highways difficult on Monday after much of Ontario experienced heavy snowfall last night.

On the QEW this morning in Burlington, there was a jackknifed tractor trailer at Guelph Line and the OPP say this was one of many.
“We’ve had multiple jackknifed tractor trailers, within the last 24 – 36 hours,” said OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt. “Fortunately no serious injuries but a lot of headaches with the delays.”

Meanwhile on residential streets in Burlington, people were digging out cars, plowing their driveways and even shovelling the roads.

“It’s a tremendous amount and I haven’t seen this much since the storm of ‘77 which was unbelievable,” said one resident.

For many, it was an all day event. Once driveways were clear, it was time to clean off the cars.

“A snow plow came through and buried us once again and this is probably my second or third hour of shovelling,” said another resident. “It’s been a long day but we live in Canada – we will get through it.”

The City of Burlington is responsible for plowing the roads and also clearing the side walks.

Matt Koevoets, Manager of Road Operations, said in the past 24 hours, 35 to 50 centimetres of snow had fallen.

“Our plows have been out since the beginning of the storm and taking care of the primary and secondary roads throughout the night,” Koevoets said. “After the roads are plowed, we will be moving into some snow removal in various locations throughout the city.”

The region of Halton has now issued a cold weather warning, which happens when temperatures are expected to fall below –15 C without wind chill.

READ MORE: Extreme cold continues for much of Halton, Hamilton: Environment Canada