‘So grateful’: Stranded Fort McMurray high schoolers wait out highway closures at Edmonton businesses

Students and staff members from a Fort McMurray high school wait out highway closures during a spring snowstorm in Edmonton.

Some 46 students and five staff members of a Fort McMurray high school were a long way from home on Saturday, stranded in the capital city as they waited out a spring storm that left a northern Alberta highway a snowy mess.

Lou Ann Demers-Noble is the principal of Holy Trinity Catholic High School, about 433 kilometres north of Edmonton. On Wednesday, the group took a bus to St. Albert for an annual graduation retreat.

“Got down here Wednesday, Thursday, spent all day. Friday morning, ready to leave, and no, the highway was closed,” Demers-Noble told CTV News Edmonton.

Parts of Highway 63, which connects Edmonton to much of northeastern Alberta, remained closed Saturday morning after heavy wind and snow left hundreds of vehicles stuck in inclement conditions.

Around 3 p.m. Saturday, Highway 63 and 881 were reopened in all directions. However, Mounties said travel was still not recommended.

Read more: Northern Alberta highways reopen after spring storm, travel not recommended: RCMP

“Some of our students are missing their grad photos this weekend, which is a really important part of their graduation journey. I know that some kids are missing work, and work is very important to them, and kids have homework at home waiting for them. So I know that this is stressful for everybody,” Demers-Noble said.

With almost 50 teenagers to entertain for an indefinite amount of time, Demers-Noble and her family posted a callout on social media, asking the community for ways to pass the time while they waited for the highway to clear.

The response was almost instant. By Saturday afternoon, both the Telus World of Science and the West Edmonton Mall had hooked the group up.

They spent the first part of their day touring the science centre at a school discount usually reserved for weekdays.

“Many of them have never been here, and they’re loving it,” Demers-Noble said.

WEM gave them passes for the day. Star of the North Retreat Centre, where they had stayed for the trip, extended their visit.

“We’re just so grateful for the kindness of people. And I’ve had strangers reach out and ask how they can help. We’re just so grateful.”

The school leader remembers similar support from local businesses during the Fort McMurray wildfires, which displaced tens of thousands of residents 10 years ago this May.

“When we evacuated for five weeks down here in Edmonton, so many businesses and people were just generous beyond measure, and now again, we’re experiencing it, just in a different light.”

Both Highway 63 and 881 are maintained by the province. A spokesperson for the province’s snow-clearing contractor, Emcon Services, previously told CTV News Edmonton crews were on the ground working to clear the snowfall.

Responding to concerns of delays to that work, the province said the process was tricky due to the severity of the storm and ongoing snowfall, not a “lack of preparedness.”

The students, teachers and bus driver of Fort McMurray are ready to get back home, but Demers-Noble said she prioritized safety before anything.

“They are troopers,” she said of her group. “And I’m very blessed with the best.”

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Galen McDougall