Ice storm Feb. 6, 2019 (BlackburnNews.com photo)Ice storm Feb. 6, 2019 (BlackburnNews.com photo)
Sarnia

Storm coats Sarnia-Lambton with ice

A storm that coated southwestern Ontario with anywhere from five to 15 millimetres of ice was gradually moving east Wednesday afternoon.

Environment Canada's freezing rain warning, extending from Windsor to Kingston, was ended for Sarnia and west Lambton County by mid-afternoon and reduced to a freezing drizzle advisory for east Lambton County.

While some freezing drizzle was still possible Wednesday night into the early morning, temperatures Thursday were forecast to climb to 9 C (48 F) with periods of rain, possibly even a thunderstorm.

By noon Wednesday, Bluewater Power had reported just one weather-related power outage.

Accumulating ice brought down part of a tree at around 11 a.m., knocking out power to about four thousand customers in an area east of Murphy Road, to the lakeshore and Bright's Grove, and south to Confederation Line. Power was restored in about half-an-hour.

Utility CEO Janice McMichael-Dennis said ice storms are of great concern.

"So when you have ice build-up on your lines, your poles and infrastructure, it can cause power outages, of course," said McMichael-Dennis. "Ice storms for utilities are a big worry."

Sarnia police had not reported any major incidents through the morning Wednesday, but OPP were investigating some crashes involving tractor trailers on highways 402 and 401.

Drivers were again being urged to slow down and adjust to the conditions.

Pedestrians were also advised to exercise added caution while walking on sidewalks and other icy surfaces like parking lots.

School buses were cancelled across Lambton-Kent Wednesday, and Emterra's recycling collection was cancelled in Sarnia and St. Clair Township.

The full list of Sarnia-Lambton closures and cancellations can be found here.

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