Stranded in Shelburne – 275 motorists seek shelter overnight

January 29, 2014 · 0 Comments

As winter storms slam most of Southern Ontario, road closures due to blustery winds of up to 80 miles an hour left 275 motorists stranded in Shelburne, Ontario over the January 24th weekend.

Stranded motorists took shelter in the Centre Dufferin Recreational Complex, Shelburne’s local arena, and were cared for and attended to by Dufferin Emergency Services, and many volunteers who were organized within the hour of the state of emergency declaration. All roads exiting Shelburne were closed that night .

Shelburne’s Constable Paul Neumann would like to thank Dufferin Emergency Services, comprised of many organizations, community volunteers, local businesses and everyone who helped during the crisis and reminds people, “You cannot drive on a closed highway, even if you live on that road, it’s illegal.”

Constable Neumann delivers insight into why people disregard warnings, “People don’t realize the dangers involved when they ignore road closures and winter storm warnings. Drivers don’t realize they will be impairing the ability of emergency services, fire trucks, plows, and tow trucks that need room on the road to get to people who are ditched, in need of medical attention, and not to mention their own safety. Closures happen for a reason and often people disagree with our assessment.”

A lot can happen when bad weather conditions surprise drivers or weather warnings are ignored. Even experienced drivers were not prepared for the blinding whiteout situations as Dave Kenyon commented from the shelter of the Arena, “ I ditched on 89, West of County Road 25 on the opposite side of traffic,” and continued, “I was lucky that a passerby stopped to help out. I called the OPP to report the car ditched but also to let them know the car is vacant, that way they can concentrate on people who may need help. The guy who helped me, kindly brought me to Shelburne and eventually, I found my way here. I’m supposed to packing up my house to move this weekend!”

Jessica McNairn from London was on her way to Collingwood when she had gone as far as she could go due to road closures resulting in she and her three young children staying overnight in the safety of the arena.

“We actually saw a logging truck roll over just outside Mount Forest around seven p.m. I went off the shoulder myself . It’s scary and I do this drive all the time. I’ve never seen it quite like this.”

And that was the general sentiment among the 275 people stranded at the arena. CEO Town Clerk, John Telfer commented he hadn’t seen anything like this since the Hydro Blackout years ago. When Mayor Ed Crewson and Telfer addressed the crowd regarding the latest road condition updates, the crowd did not get the news they were hoping for and many a weary traveller would have to cancel any further travel plans involving any road leaving Shelburne.

Wherever this reporter went in the arena stories of kindness, generosity and survival could be heard. New Orleans Pizza delivered 25 Pizzas to the stranded, No Frills, Pete’s Donuts, Giant Tiger and many other business were commendably on hand to help during the crisis.

By Saturday late afternoon everyone had gone home or elsewhere and the shelters were closed.

Anita Horlings, Simple First Aid Supervising Instructor with the Canadian Red Cross commented, “A total of 437 clients spent the night in sites that were set up. Seventeen volunteers from Brampton, Milton, Barrie, and surrounding areas assisted with this response and contributed 163.5 hours.” Horlings mentioned the Red Cross was still on call Saturday evening as the weather was expected to continue to get worse.

Many lessons were painfully learned as some people needed to get home to give pets medication and couldn’t, needed their own medication, didn’t think to have a first aid kit in the event of ditching their vehicle, etc. Police hope that in future, more will take storm warnings and road closures more seriously and stay off the roads. Special thanks to the Shelburne Fire Department, Shelburne EMS, St John Ambulance, Canadian Red Cross, Shelburne Police Department, local businesses, and the many residents who opened their homes to strangers in this time of need.

By Alex Sher

Dave Kenyon ditched his car on Friday, January 23rd and found himself seeking shelter at the local arena among 275 stranded motorists unable to leave Shelburne due to road closures as a result of blustery winds of up to 80 miles an hour, making driving conditions impossible.

(LtoR) Jessica McNairn and her three children, Carson, Emily and Megan sought refuge at Shelburne’s local Arena after driving conditions became impossible.

Shelburne’s Mayor Ed Crewson and CEO Town Clerk, John Telfer addressed the stranded at Centre Dufferin Recreational Complex, providing road condition updates and for many, it was not the news they were hoping for. Crewson encouraged people to ere on the side of caution, and think about safety first when considering the road condition warnings and travel plans.

(L to R) Canadian Red Cross Volunteers, Lynn Howell from Milton and Alain Normand from Brampton were just two of the 17 Canadian Red Cross volunteers helping stranded people in shelters during a state of emergency where strong winter winds resulted in road closures leaving many unable to exit Shelburne in any direction.

(L to R) St. Johns Ambulance workers, Amanda Andrade, Ryan Smith, Chris Kirec, Nick Vanloon and Patricia Sommerset managed care for many medical situations during January 24th and 25th’s crisis situation where 275 stranded motorists took shelter in Shelburne’s local arena.