Nova Scotians clean up following winter storm

Maritimers clean up following storm Many Maritimers spent Saturday cleaning up after the first major storm of the New Year. Sarah Plowman reports.

Many Nova Scotians spent Saturday cleaning up after a mix of heavy, wet snow, rain and high winds hit the region.

Slick roads led to some collisions in the province. In Cape Breton, a transport truck jackknifed and slammed into a guardrail before ending up in the Bras d’Or lake around 10 p.m. Friday.

RCMP say the driver of the truck escaped with minor injuries.

“He managed to escape the transport truck before it submerged,” said RCMP Cpl. Chris Marshall. “He was treated at the scene and then taken to hospital.”

A truck driver escaped with minor injuries after his vehicle went off the road and into the Bras d'Or lake on Friday. (Photo: Michael Macinnis)

THOUSANDS LEFT IN THE DARK FOLLOWING STORM

The weather caused widespread power outages in the province. At the height of the storm, 80,000 customers were in the dark. Nova Scotia Power said as of 11 a.m. Saturday, crews restored power to 84 per cent of all customers who lost service.

“We have around 400 people – powerline technicians, forestry works, damage assessors and others – on the ground across the province responding to this storm,” said Sean Borden, Nova Scotia Power Storm Lead in a news release. “We also have hundreds more working behind the scenes to support restoration efforts. Our teams and crews will continue to work to restore power safely and as quickly as possible.”

Nova Scotia Power said areas like Clare, Digby, Bridgetown, Kingston and Coldbrook were hit by significant amounts of heavy snow combined with high winds overnight. While parts of the eastern shore and Cape Breton saw some of the highest winds in the province at over 100 km/hr.

PARKING BAN LIFTED IN HALIFAX

In a news release, The Halifax Regional Municipality said clean up operations were active in all areas, with a focus on priority routes. According to the city, the majority of main arterials are clear and passable.

The overnight winter parking ban has been lifted in both Zone 1 – Central and Zone 2 – Non-Central.

Green cart collection services for Halifax, Sackville, Fall River, Waverley, Cole Harbour, Westphal and Cherry Brook that were previously scheduled for Friday, Jan. 7, will instead occur on Friday, Jan. 21, due to the storm.