IQALUIT
Has the city closed the roads? Are cabs still out? Am I still supposed to go to work?

Nathalie-Isabelle Richard stands in front of the stop sign at West - 40 in Iqaluit on March 19. A three-day blizzard shut down Iqaluit and spread confusion across the city. - photo courtesy of Nathalie-Isabelle Richard Snow is piled several metres high along the Road to Nowhere in Iqaluit after snow plows opened the road on March 20. - Michele LeTourneau/NNSL photo

Social media in Iqaluit was a mess of confusion during a three-day blizzard that started March 17.

The city seemed to be the first one to act, closing the roads and suspending municipal services. But businesses didn't uniformly close along with that, and even the Government of Nunavut on March 18 said it would be open its offices and then quickly reversed that - after some people had already begun to walk to work in high wind.

Airlines were shut down, and people coming to Iqaluit from Ottawa were stranded until March 18.

Cab companies seemed the bravest of the bunch, though, only taking cars off the road when it was just about impossible to see and drifts were so bad multiple vehicles were left stranded.

The blowup on Facebook about what was open and what was happening led to the creation of the Iqaluit Blizzard Announcements page, which now has more than 1,600 members, specifically to centralize the conversation.

Mayor Madeleine Redfern said some of the confusion March 18 came from a city public service announcement that indicated crews were clearing the road but asks residents to still stay home because of the conditions.

"Our road crews may be on the road during periods of time they deem it safe enough to do some clearing - there can be emergencies during blizzards, where fire, ambulance, or police have to be called out - and it's best that there is an attempt to have some of the main arteries at least passable in that event," said Redfern. "I think some residents believed that with road crews on the roads it meant that it was safe for them to go out, and I clarified that it was not and asked people to stay home and to stay safe."

The protocol for the city, she said, is to monitor Environment Canada's weather forecast and have public works assess the situation on the ground.

"When they deem that the blizzard or the storm is getting to the point where it's no longer safe for the residents and city crews to be on the road, they will issue a public service announcement informing the community that they are suspending municipal service, which is what we did on Thursday (March 17)," she said.

It's important to note, she added, that blizzards will wax and wane and people should keep an eye on the forecast.

Iqaluit has a bylaw allowing the city to fine and ticket people on the road when it is deemed unsafe. If vehicles get stuck, the owner will be responsible for the towing and impound fees.

But the city also recognizes clear information is needed, said Redfern. To that end, she's committed to meeting with staff to make sure the city's messaging is clear, and she will also be meeting with other organizations in the city.

"I think that's why it's important that the city has an interagency and partner meeting so that everyone understands how and why the city makes its determination when it is going to suspend municipal services or close its roads and ask residents not to go on or near the roads and what that means for businesses," said Redfern.

Some employees, she noted, live very near or even in the same building as their employment, meaning it is still easy for them to get to work.

"However, it does invite residents and others to go out and venture in unsafe conditions, and that is a problem," added Redfern.

It is important the city take a lead in the communication going forward, she said.

Although the blizzard caused some degree of chaos, many residents delighted in the extreme storm experience.

"I love winter," said Nathalie-Isabelle Richard, who ventured out in the city on March 18.

"I guess it is why I chose the Northern experience. After being seven years in Iqaluit and wishing years after years for snow, now it's snowmobile/ATV dream land for us - that means play time!"

She stood on a snowdrift on the West - 40 road with a stop sign at foot height to show to her friends down south how wild it had become in the North.

"During the three days, I enjoyed the time inside relaxing with my family and taking time for myself," said Richard. "We were prepared in case of a few days blizzard."

For better or worse, the storm was largely centred over Iqaluit. Even Kimmirut, the closest community to the south, did not feel the hit as hard.

"Ours was only one and a half days," said Hosea Mpofu, senior administrative officer in Kimmirut.

"We had to close and of course there was no passenger traffic to Kimmirut."

To get in front of one of the fears and realities of the blizzards for people on trucked-water services, the city delivered water on March 23, when it normally wouldn't, just in case the wind came up March 24 and the city would have to be shut down again.

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