News Release

FREDERICTON (GNB) – The Department of Public Safety's New Brunswick Emergency Measures Organization issued the following advisory today:

Environment Canada is forecasting that a low-pressure system from the southwest will track across the Maritimes as a large winter storm Sunday night, Jan. 20, and into Monday Jan. 21.

Environment Canada’s Special Weather statement says that all indications show a major snowfall event for areas north of the track of the low and significant amounts of snow, rain and an extended period of freezing rain near the track of the low. The precipitation will be accompanied by very strong east to northeast winds.

Current indications suggest that the storm will track through the Bay of Fundy Sunday evening and then into the Gulf of St. Lawrence overnight. This track could give widespread snowfall amounts of 20-60 cm. Rainfall amounts of 10-30 mm are possible over extreme southern regions of the province. An extended period of freezing rain is also possible for areas in southern New Brunswick. It should be noted that even a slight shift in its forecast track will have a major effect on the type and amount of precipitation received.

Residents should prepare for the possibility that the storm could cause power outages.

As the storm is expected to have an impact on the travelling public, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure will be testing a new feature of NB 511 over the weekend. This Twitter feed is designed to push important transportation notifications to New Brunswickers through automatically generated tweets. The feed, which will not be interactive at this time, will generate the following notifications:

• Travel not recommended.

• Road closures.

• Roads open to emergency and service vehicles only.

• Ferry notifications.

Residents are encouraged to follow the NB 511 Twitter @brunswick511.

Motorists should avoid driving on snow-covered roads and check New Brunswick 511 before travelling

Carbon monoxide safety measures

Snow accumulation may increase the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning related to fuel heating systems. Residents should ensure they have a working carbon monoxide (CO) alarm in their homes. This is the first line of defence against this colorless, odorless, tasteless gas formed by the incomplete burning of natural gas, gasoline, kerosene, oil, propane or wood.

Never run generators or cook with an open flame inside a home or a garage as these activities also create carbon monoxide.

72 hour preparedness

New Brunswickers are reminded to have everything they need for at least 72 hours following a storm. This includes preparing an emergency kit for home and car; knowing what to do during power outages; and knowing how to stay safe during an emergency.

An emergency kit should include food, water, batteries, a flashlight, a battery-powered radio, first-aid supplies, cash in small bills in case ATMs are unavailable due to a power outage, and any special items such as prescriptions, infant formula and equipment for people with disabilities.

An emergency preparedness guide is available online. To prepare for an outage, visit the NB Power website.

For further updates you may follow the Emergency Measure Organization on Twitter and Facebook, or by visiting the 24/7 emergency updates webpage. For storm-related social media messages, search #nbstorm.