Severe winter weather has brought Canada’s Atlantic coast to a standstill, as residents in Nova Scotia grapple with record-breaking snowfall.
On Monday, communities across Canada’s Atlantic region began digging out from a ‘historic’ snowstorm that swept through over the weekend. The province of Nova Scotia was particularly hard hit, with parts of Cape Breton Island experiencing unprecedented snowfall that halted transportation networks and forced the closure of businesses, government offices, and schools.
The Cape Breton Regional Municipality declared a local state of emergency in response to the storm’s impacts. Officials emphasized that the primary focus in the coming days would be on clearing roads to ensure access for emergency vehicles. Schools will remain closed, and the local bus service, Transit Cape Breton, has suspended operations until further notice. Authorities have requested that non-essential services stay closed until roads are deemed safe.
Environment Canada meteorologist Bob Robichaud described the storm as ‘historic’ in scale. “It is very likely that areas around southeastern Cape Breton exceeded 100 centimeters of precipitation,” Robichaud told AFP. “If we look at the entire event, from Friday until this morning, these are record quantities,” he added.
The severe weather has significant implications for global transportation and could affect travel plans for individuals coming from Asia to Canada. Travelers are advised to check with airlines and transportation services for the latest updates.
This extreme weather event highlights the broader impacts of climate change, a concern shared across continents. As Asia also faces its own climate-related challenges, events like Canada’s snowfall underline the importance of global cooperation in addressing environmental issues.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
