Yesterday was a busy night for the Alberta RCMP, with officers responding to a total of 149 reported collisions, which led them to issue a province-wide warning for motorists to stay off the roads.
Slippery and low-visibility conditions plagued the province’s roads for hours on the evening of January 16th, and law enforcement indicates that from 12:00 p.m. January 16th to 8:00 a.m. January 17th, police responded to 71 collisions in Central Alberta alone.
A further 78 collisions were reported throughout the rest of the province, with 28 occurring in the east, 24 reported in the south, and 26 in the west. A total of six people sustained injuries due to their accidents, and 143 resulted in property damage.
In Grande Prairie, at least one major collision occurred during last night’s freeze; however, as of the early evening of January 16th, the County of Grande Prairie has confirmed traffic has since been cleared.
The RCMP maintains that the number of collisions is likely to continue growing over the next few days as reports continue to come in at various detachments.
As a result, police are “stressing” that when it is advised not to travel, residents should heed this advice, as a driver is not only putting their own life at risk, but the lives of others, including first responders.
