State of Emergency declared in Lennox and Addington County as storm shuts down travel

Via Rail passengers stranded for hours Hundreds of passengers were left stranded for hours on a Via Rail train due to extreme weather conditions.

The County of Lennox and Addington, Greater Napanee, Loyalist and Stone Mills Townships have declared a local state of emergency because of the winter storm that continues to batter the region.

In a news release Saturday, the county said the declaration was made because of the dangerous road conditions.

“This has been necessitated by roads and other critical transport networks being disrupted to the point that emergency services cannot effectively service the community, and the continuing extreme hazard to public safety,” it said.

A local state of emergency allows municipal governments to procure necessary items and services without having to go through the typical steps required, effectively allowing governments to secure critical items more quickly.

“Please stay inside to allow our emergency and essential workers to respond to this ongoing situation, and to reduce risk,” the county said.

Blowing snow has reduced visibility to near zero in many parts of eastern Ontario and along Highway 401, forcing police to close stretches of the busy highway on Christmas Eve. All roads in nearby Prince Edward County have been closed because of the storm.

Hydro One is reporting scattered power outages in the region, with some estimated restoration times as late as 4 p.m. Sunday.