As a winter storm hammers Chatham-Kent with snow and strong winds, the head of the municipality's fire and emergency services is urging people to stay home.
Chatham-Kent Chief of Fire and Emergency Services Chris Case says emergency crews have been kept extremely busy Friday extricating victims in several collisions.
“The situation is deteriorating. We’re trying to get people safely out of their vehicles and provide medical assistance. We don’t need anyone to venture onto the roads and create more incidents. Please stay home,” he said.
A series of collision on Highway 401 has forced the closure of the highway from London to Tilbury, while Highway 402 is closed between London and Sarnia because of collisions, including one near Strathroy that involved more than 50 vehicles.
In Chatham-Kent, the municipality has decided to pull plows from the roads as visibility is "near zero."
“Near zero visibility due to blowing snow in outlying areas has resulted in snowplows being pulled from service temporarily,” said Chatham-Kent Public Works Director Ryan Brown. “We will continue to assess the situation.”