Weather

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It was a one-two punch for the Kincardine area yesterday morning (March 11), as a severe snowstorm hit, closing roads and schools, and then knocking out the power.

Local schools were initially kept open, with all buses cancelled. However, as roads were closed, so were the schools.

Highway 21 was closed from Port Elgin to Goderich and then as far south as Bayfield, and Bruce County Road 23 (B-line) was closed from MacCaskill Road (just north of Kincardine hospital) to Bruce County Road 15 (Inverhuron Road). Heavy snowfall and blowing and drifting snow closed the highway, while heavy drifting and numerous cars in the ditch closed the B-line.

The southern portion of the B-line was opened later in the afternoon. However, the roadway between Lorne Beach and County Road 15 remained closed due to heavy drifting and poor visibility.

Highway 21, from Port Elgin to Goderich, remained closed all day.

Meanwhile, to make matters worse, the hydro went out at about 10:30 a.m. in Kincardine.

Westario Power reported that customers in the Walkerton area lost power earlier in the morning due to the heavy snow and gusty wind up to 70 km/h. Crews were sent out and power was restored to most of Kincardine by about 1:10 p.m.

Hydro One reported about 132 customers without power west of Walkerton in the isolated, rural area. Further south, in the Strathroy and Clinton area, thousands were without hydro. Restoration was expected by about 8 p.m., once crews assessed the damage and made repairs.

The snow and wind were expected to diminish by today (March 12), with just a few flurries remaining.

Wet snow clings to the trees along River Lane, Kincardine

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Friday, March 11, 2011