Regina is digging out as winter reestablishes its hold on much of Saskatchewan.

Both residents and municipalities are beginning to respond to the snowfall which rapidly built up Tuesday night and into Wednesday.

Regions of central and southeastern Saskatchewan, including Regina, received between 25 and 35 centimetres of snow in this latest blast of winter – while other areas between 15 to 25 centimetres.

Darrel Hockley was out shoveling his Regina sidewalk Wednesday.

“I just hope this is it,” he joked. “I was hoping we were done because I like spring and summer because it’s easier to cut the lawn.”

On Wednesday morning, the City of Regina declared snow routes – meaning a parking ban will soon go into effect for streets in the city marked with a blue sign containing a white snowflake.

The parking ban goes into effect at 6 a.m. Feb. 19 until 6 a.m. Feb. 20. According to the City, the ban allows crews to plow the roads from curb to curb and helps ensure the roads are passable for emergency response vehicles.

Triage measures

City crews were out in full force with all 26 plows and graders, 12 sanders and eight sidewalk tractors working to clear streets.

“It’s all hands on deck,” city manager of seasonal roadway operations, Daryl Massier told CTV News. “This is our biggest snowfall of this season for sure. But t’s the same prep we have for five centimeters of snow or 25 centimetres of snow.”

As of 4 p.m. Wednesday, Regina Police Service said it had received reports of just four collisions since 12 a.m., with no injuries occurring as a result.

“The Regina Police Service would like to thank motorists for their care and attention throughout the day, as they navigated heavy snow and challenging driving conditions both in and outside of the city.,” the service said in a statement.

The City remains focused on its triage snow clearing efforts, plowing its high-priority roads and transit routes first.

“As soon as the snow stops, we start what we call our systematic plan,” Massier explained. “Basically what that is we use all of our contractors, all of our all of our resources for a systematic ploy starting with the category ones moving on to the twos, the threes, so on and so forth.”

Massier adds staying ahead of the snowfall is easier said than done.

“If it was ten centimeters of snow falling straight down, nice and fluffy, it would be easy. But you get even a few centimeters and an 80 kilometer wind and things just get plugged up,” he said.

The City hopes to begin residential street clearing, based on priority, over the next few days.

Air travel impacted

Crews at the Regina International Airport (YQR) were also busy clearing walkways and the runway so flights were clear for takeoff.

However, several flights Wednesday were delayed or cancelled and not just due to conditions in Regina.

“If we have a flight going into Calgary where they’ve got a storm and they can’t land, they’re not going to take off from here,” Kyla Antonini, the manager of public relations and customer experience for the Regina Airport Authority said. “The weather at the arrival airport matters as well and there’s wild weather all across Canada right now.”

YQR reminds all flyers to double check the status of their flights with the individual airlines prior to heading to the airport.