2013 Alberta Winter Storm Watch

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robertmac

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With most of eastern Canada having Storm Watches/Warnings over the last couple of months, we now have most of Central and Southern Alberta under either a Heavy Snow Fall warning or Winter Storm Watch. It has been a number of years since I have seen a real severe blizzard in Southern Alberta. The last really bad one I can remember in Calgary was just before New Years Day in 1975. While there are no blizzard warnings yet, and too often these Watches/Warnings fizzle out, might make for some interesting scanning this weekend, especially Saturday night and certainly Sunday if we get the snow, freezing rain and wind [although temp and wind velocity do not warrant blizzard status].
 

Jay911

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We're only supposed to get 10cm in Calgary on Sunday and 23cm in Red Deer. I am not running out and cleaning all the bread off the store shelves.
 

VE6E0

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Will this be the lead item on The National, like everytime Toronto gets 15cm.

Ever since EC changed their forecast model 5 or so years ago, their forecasts have over eatimated the severity of weather events. As a friend who is a weather specialist with them told me, they don't pay attention to the three day forecast, only the next 24 hrs.
 

robertmac

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2250 hours 2013 Mar. 2

Warnings
City of Calgary
10:43 PM MST Saturday 02 March 2013
Winter storm warning for
City of Calgary continued

Persons in or near this area should be on the lookout for adverse weather conditions and take necessary safety precautions. Watch for updated statements.

Please refer to the latest public forecasts for further details and continue to monitor the situation through your local radio and television stations or Weatheradio.

Listened to 162.400 but unfortunately, the French announcements came on and all I understood were the Town names. All I got in English was that at 10:43 the Winter Storm Warning for Calgary has been updated. I did see earlier that winds were supposed to gust to 60 kmph in the city and 80 between Calgary and Medicine Hat. I will wait another 5 minutes and see if the weather changes.
 

robertmac

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One of the reason I posted this is because of all the news that the winter storms in Eastern Canada get. So maybe we might get in the news for something out west besides our Oil [which is getting kind of boring lately]. And one of the problems with EC is they have moved all or most of their meteorologist down east, so they rely too much on cameras and computer weather maps. At 2300 hours, finally heard an English forecast on 162.400 and they are now saying 12-19 cms of snow by Sunday night for Calgary, more out Bragg Creek/Kananaskis way, still with wind and gusting wind until late Sunday night.
 

Heterodyne

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One of the reason I posted this is because of all the news that the winter storms in Eastern Canada get. So maybe we might get in the news for something out west besides our Oil [which is getting kind of boring lately]. And one of the problems with EC is they have moved all or most of their meteorologist down east, so they rely too much on cameras and computer weather maps. At 2300 hours, finally heard an English forecast on 162.400 and they are now saying 12-19 cms of snow by Sunday night for Calgary, more out Bragg Creek/Kananaskis way, still with wind and gusting wind until late Sunday night.

What are you, a Torontonian? Since when is 12 cm of snow a big deal n Alberta?
 

VE6E0

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Lets say I was a little shocked when the local ARES guys mentioned that if there was a local CANWARN group, all the information would be relayed to the severe weather desk, which is located in Downsview. Have to wonder, how one specialist could handle two or more events in different parts of the country.
 

robertmac

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To an east central Albertan now

Especially Heterodyne. I'm probably more of a Prairie boy than one who now lives in East Central Alberta and originally came from Ontario. Lived through the big blizzard at the end of the 1940s when I was "sliding" off the roof of our house in a dish pan because the drifts went as high as the roof. But if one lives in the cities in Alberta, everyone knows just how stupid the driving gets when there is 1 cm of snow let alone more. But having learned how to drive in the gumbo of south eastern Alberta, I am not afraid to drive in the snow, but have learned never to trust the other idiots that share the road. The scanners were really busy today with fire trucks getting stuck, ambulances getting stuck, police vehicles getting stuck, fire trucks and buses sliding into parked vehicles, vehicles running into other vehicles, vehicles managing to turn themselves around and driving down the wrong way on Deathfoot and Stormy Trail, vehicles flying into ditches, vehicles managing to flip themselves over in the middle of the road, vehicles flying by pedestrians trying to cross the road in cross walks with the ambers flashing, planes being delayed, Vancouver Canucks almost late for their game, power poles burning and cutting off power to various areas of Calgary, multi vehicle collisions, buses unable to make it up hills, or for that matter around corners, 1.5 meter drifts on roads, and the list goes on. I guess we can be lucky it was not the 20-25 cms of snow that was forecast. But we all know the center of the universe is in TO.
 
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VE6E0

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Saw my fair share of idiots yesterday at noon. Had to go down to Okotoks, then Millarville. Road conditions weren't that great, whiteouts, accumulation and hard packed snow with icy patches. Had one guy in a jacked up Ram pass by me doing 90, only to hit a whiteout 30 or so seconds later. Heard later the RCMP closed Hwy. 2 because of conditions and accidents. Won't get into the folks who should not of gone out because of lack of snow tires, etc. Dug and pushed out numeous cars in a parking lot. Got out to my parents' to plow their driveway, and surprisingly the wind cleared most of it for me. One pass, 1/2 hour later was having dinner. Drive back into Calgary was much easier, as the plows had done their thing.

Remember, if a snow flake hits south of Bloor St. in Toronto, it is a blizzard. When it melts,it is global warming.
 

Heterodyne

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Especially Heterodyne. I'm probably more of a Prairie boy than one who now lives in East Central Alberta and originally came from Ontario. Lived through the big blizzard at the end of the 1940s when I was "sliding" off the roof of our house in a dish pan because the drifts went as high as the roof. But if one lives in the cities in Alberta, everyone knows just how stupid the driving gets when there is 1 cm of snow let alone more. But having learned how to drive in the gumbo of south eastern Alberta, I am not afraid to drive in the snow, but have learned never to trust the other idiots that share the road. The scanners were really busy today with fire trucks getting stuck, ambulances getting stuck, police vehicles getting stuck, fire trucks and buses sliding into parked vehicles, vehicles running into other vehicles, vehicles managing to turn themselves around and driving down the wrong way on Deathfoot and Stormy Trail, vehicles flying into ditches, vehicles managing to flip themselves over in the middle of the road, vehicles flying by pedestrians trying to cross the road in cross walks with the ambers flashing, planes being delayed, Vancouver Canucks almost late for their game, power poles burning and cutting off power to various areas of Calgary, multi vehicle collisions, buses unable to make it up hills, or for that matter around corners, 1.5 meter drifts on roads, and the list goes on. I guess we can be lucky it was not the 20-25 cms of snow that was forecast. But we all know the center of the universe is in TO.

Cracked like a nut :)
 

robertmac

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How's Coronation?

Any nuts out there? I see the gophers are out already. At least no mosquitos this time of the year. Although the geese are coming back, here, all the sloughs are still frozen out Coronation way.
Had the best laugh today watching a "sports car" with those big noisy dual mufflers and rear wheel drive get stuck. Of course it only had 4 inches of clearance. Mind you, the driver kept turning his wheels at 90' so ended up snow plowing all the time. Then tried to go up a raised driveway and just sat there spinning his rear wheels like crazy. I'm sure he was red lining as he stalled a couple of times. After 30 minutes finally got to bare pavement. And his passenger just kept trying to get lower and lower in the seat. I guess he didn't want to get his shoes wet because he didn't get out and push which would have got the sports car to bare pavement in 1 minute. I sure wouldn't but a used vehicle these days after watching how drivers abuse their engines. Should have had a video camera and posted on You Tube. Would have made for a good laugh.
 
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Heterodyne

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Any nuts out there? I see the gophers are out already. At least no mosquitos this time of the year. Although the geese are coming back, here, all the sloughs are still frozen out Coronation way.
Had the best laugh today watching a "sports car" with those big noisy dual mufflers and rear wheel drive get stuck. Of course it only had 4 inches of clearance. Mind you, the driver kept turning his wheels at 90' so ended up snow plowing all the time. Then tried to go up a raised driveway and just sat there spinning his rear wheels like crazy. I'm sure he was red lining as he stalled a couple of times. After 30 minutes finally got to bare pavement. And his passenger just kept trying to get lower and lower in the seat. I guess he didn't want to get his shoes wet because he didn't get out and push which would have got the sports car to bare pavement in 1 minute. I sure wouldn't but a used vehicle these days after watching how drivers abuse their engines. Should have had a video camera and posted on You Tube. Would have made for a good laugh.

Nobody flamed anybody -- but if you've got nothing better to do than to run google searches on people who reply to your posts, there are many community groups that would like nothing more than to take advantage of your seemingly copious amounts of free time.
 

VE6E0

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LOL...how old was the driver and passenger? What I love to watch are the guys who mat the accelerator while getting a push, and watch the reaction when they hit bare pavement. The other fun thing I watched yesterday was a guy trying to pull a car which was stuck in a parking lot. He was really giving it a tug the car was not budging, until the lady in the car took her foot off the brake.
 

robertmac

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Scarry

They were in the 25-30 year range. Old people like me wouldn't be driving cars like that, especially with the snow we had. And I was just waiting for him to hit bare pavement when he was trying to back up because it would have flown him into a very busy street. Or I was waiting for him to shoot forward and go through a house.
 

robertmac

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Round 2

By the sounds, round 2 has started tonight with the snow fall today. Lots of vehicles ending up where they can't drive. Some roads reported as snow covered on top of ice. At least no wind so won't have to shovel packed drifts. Got to love March in Calgary for having the most snow fall of any month during the winter season.
 

robertmac

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Deathfoot Trail

Last night there were crash after crash from Airdrie to Highway 22X, north and south. Even this morning, dozens of crashes on Deathfoot and near Cross Iron. Saw one, 5 car rear ender. We just don't learn to slow down and leave enough distance. Fire, AHS EMS, and CPS were certainly busy last night and this AM. Tow truck operators made a mint.
 

robertmac

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Can't comment on Saskabush but we still can monitor RCMP which, because of computers, is a lot more quiet than years ago. However, with storms, it does get busy. And in Calgary, CPS, Fire and others get busy with storms. Even with last evenings little dump of snow, things got interesting overnight. As no one slows down when the weather gets icy, we have lots of vehicles running into each other, flipping over and of course hitting the ditches. And Calgary Airport can be interesting as well.
 

robertmac

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Now out in East Central Alberta starting tomorrow

Near sexyHam are, although not showing up yet, just in they county to the north. Probably get freezing rain then snow. Although there probably will be a lot lest radio traffic than we hear in the big City of Calgary. Of which, every morning this week, there have been dozens of crashes with blocked roads and the roads are really not that bad. Just a case of someone driving too fast and trying to change lanes when there isn't room. Seen it twice this week myself. Have no idea why the vehicle changed lanes with just a little room to spare, into the number 2 lane from 3 lane. Then 500 metres further down, cut off another driver in lane 3 to exist. Just plan stupid. Then we had a death on 16 ave. What a waste. Ambulance x 4 at least, fire, police for 6 hours. Terrible cost. Couple rushed to FMC in red, another yellow. Waste. Drive like they were on the 401 on the weekend when it was closed for 12 hours due to speeders flying into one another.
 
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