This weekend’s heavy snowfall caused motorists to struggle with driving within the city. Although there were only a few collisions reported to police, officers did spend a significant period of time each day assisting drivers and assisted over two dozen on Sunday alone.

Also, on Sunday just after 9:00 a.m. police responded to a residence in the 400 block of 8th Street East as a man was heard to be yelling from within his residence. Upon arrival police discovered that the 55 year old resident had been unable to leave his home based on the snow built up at his door, causing him to have to exit through a window. The man spoke of having a disability and being unable to shovel the snow that had piled up at his front door. As a result, officers shovelled the snow and salted the steps before heading to their next call for service.

Police also responded to calls in order to check on the emotional wellbeing of people who were feeling distressed about the weather. During one of those incidents a 52 year old resident indicated that she felt overwhelmed and trapped based on the abundance of snow which continued to fall. As a result, officers assisted by shovelling some of the heavy snow on her property in order to ease the woman’s anxiety.

Just before 2:30 p.m. a concerned citizen called police and officers responded to the 200 block of 10th Street West in relation to a woman’s behaviour and attire. Police arrived to find the 44 year old resident laying in a snowbank unresponsive. The officer was able to pick the woman up, get her to her feet and get her to a police cruiser for warmth until Paramedics arrived. The woman was suffering from hypothermia and required medical treatment at the Grey Bruce Health Services.

Around 5:00 p.m. a concerned citizen called police about a man sitting in a field of snow calling for help. Police attended and walked about 100 metres in snow which was 3 to 4 feet deep and located the 27 year old American citizen. The man had been sitting in the snow for at least 40 minuntes citing he was unable to walk on his own. The male had been using the field on the upper east side as a short cut to his destination. Police sought the assistance of the Owen Sound Fire Department and Grey County Paramedics, who took the man to the hospital.

Police would like to thank the concerned community members, for without their timely calls to police, the outcomes in some cases would have been significantly worse and possibly fatal.

photo: Officer Robillard