The District has declared a Significant Weather Event for all District roads throughout Muskoka, effective immediately. The declaration is due to Freezing Rain and Winter Storm Warnings issued by Environment Canada, forecasting weather conditions that are expected to impact road maintenance operations.
During this Significant Weather Event, residents are advised to limit travel on all District roads across Muskoka unless necessary, until further notice.
“A Significant Weather Event is declared when there is an approaching or occurring weather hazard with the potential to pose a significant danger to users of the roadways within a municipality,” explains James Steele, Commissioner of Engineering and Public Works at the District of Muskoka. “It is essential that residents stay off the roads, and only travel, if necessary, until the event is declared over, and normal service levels and operations are back in place.”
This declaration applies to all District roads in Muskoka, and each of our partnering Area Municipalities (Towns and Townships) may be declaring a Significant Weather Event for their roads as well. Declaring a Significant Weather Event for all District roads allows staff and resources from across the District to be called in to support the crews in communities most impacted.
What does declaring a Significant Weather Event mean?
The District follows strict winter maintenance timelines, but during a Significant Weather Event, road maintenance activities may take longer due to severe conditions. These events are declared to keep the community informed and safe, with crews monitoring weather and road conditions 24/7 and adjusting operations as needed.
Learn more about Significant Weather Events on our website.
Stay Updated on Road Conditions and Local Weather Alerts:
- Visit www.municipal511.ca for Municipal roads
- Visit www.ontario511.ca for Provincial highways (MTO)
- Visit www.weather.gc.ca for Environment Canada’s weather alerts
From the District of Muskoka
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It’s the holidays. Otherwise today would have been a ‘snow day’. A day off for school children since the buses don’t run when it snows. I recall Mr. West telling me of walking home past my grand parents house and being called in for hot cocoa and tarts. How it made those cold, snowy days worth the walk. Back when kids walked to school at #6 Brunel.
I don’t remember walking to school, or at least very rarely. I always rode a bus. Norm Goodwin, Mrs. Goodwin and then their son Glenn always managed to get us to school. Even on what I’m sure would today be called ‘snow days’. Recently at an afternoon of cards, a lady who had been a teacher at the Watt school told us of a particularly bad snow day years ago. The teachers were concerned about getting the kids home at the end of the day, the weather still bad. But shortly after school was done, a plow truck came along, followed by a bus. This happened two more times ’til the children on all three routes had been delivered safely home.
Today, snow days are when people with all wheel drive, snow tires all round and who want to drive 130 km. down an icy, snow-covered highway, might have trouble getting in to work or the kids to school. My first 4 wheel was a ’69 Jeep 1/2 ton. I thought I was invincible. It hardly registered when my Dad told me that when you got 4wheels stuck, “You’re really stuck son.” Ain’t that the truth. Listen to the Corb Lund tune ‘The Truck got Stuck’. It’s like that. But when todays all-wheelers go ditch diggin’, who wants to offer a tow? Most parts on these new little marvels just come off if you bump them or God forbid, pull on them.
I remember my dad telling us of when people just put cars up come winter. No snow tires. Lucky if you had chains, and the lack of ‘Prestone’ for the radiator made cars pretty useless. There was also the problem of plowing the roads. Most townships didn’t. You can still look up in old Foresters the “Thank you” issued by the townships and the DHO. For those living along a road, who owned equipment and had kept sections of roadway open during the winter months.
With the onset of snowy weather, when I was 5 or 6 years old, I could get behind the big curtains in our living room and watch the “howlers and screamers” as my mother called them, try to spin and melt their way over Carter’s Hill. When I was a bit older, it was a job to shovel out the driveway at 226 Brunel. That driveway owed me bigtime. But then I got Dennis Lovegrove to deal with it all. Sanity preserved. His equipment made short work of both places while we lived on Brunel road.
A lot older now and the doctors all suggest that shoveling snow is bad. But I look at today’s shovels and think “Damn!!” Wish I’d had one of these babies when I was 10 or 12. You sit on the blade, cross your legs in front of you, lean back and turn it loose! Man did you get a ride. Though you did have to watch that handle when the ride went a little hairy!
But today, I work in the shop, watch the birds at the feeder, read and reminisce here on Doppler. The way snow days are supposed to be. These days.