December 2007 Ice Storm in Iowa City (photographed by Alan Light)
Severe winter storms can cause widespread damage and disruption. Heavy snow often results in paralyzed transportation systems, automobile accidents due to slippery roads and stranded vehicles. When accompanied by intense winds and extreme cold, snow can isolate entire communities. Bitter cold and severe winter storms kill more than 100 people in Canada every year. That is more than the number of Canadians killed by tornadoes, thunderstorms, lightning, floods, hurricanes and heat waves combined.
The Canadian winter season usually starts in October and finishes around the middle of April. Extreme cold temperatures pose a substantial danger during the winter months. Prolonged exposure to the cold can cause frostbite, hypothermia or even death. Persons most susceptible to extreme colds are infants and the elderly. It is also important to note that cold weather puts a strain on your heart, even without exercise.
Ice storms are often winter’s worst hazard. The severity of ice storms depends on the accumulation of ice, the duration of the event, the location and extent of the area affected.
The 1998 ice storm was a severe winter storm and the most expensive natural disaster in Canadian history. While freezing rain is common in Canada, the ice storm that hit eastern Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick was exceptional. Over a period of six days 100 mm of freezing rain fell intermittently. As a result more than 4 million Canadians were displaced and nearly three million households were without electricity. Additionally this event caused in excess of C$5.5 billion in property damage and significant environmental consequences.
Strong winds and blinding snow can disorient anyone outside, and makes travel almost impossible. Snowstorms happen when a mass of very cold air moves away from the Polar Regions. When it collides with a warm air mass, the warm air rises quickly, causing clouds to form, and the cold air cuts underneath it. As long as the air below the clouds is cold the precipitation will remain as snow as it falls to the ground.
During a blizzard, piercing winds blow snow into drifts that can bury people, animals and possessions. The snow loads can also cause the collapse of structures. In the later stages of a blizzard whiteout conditions can be formed. During a whiteout the snowfall is so dense that it is hard to tell the earth from the sky.
