2008

Tuesday 08 January 2008 Wed1348 Mercifully, with federal and provincial politicians in recess, things have been quiet on the political front at home. As oil prices rise, there’s no-one to grumble to. We have survived the mega-snowfalls and the City has almost caught up on clearing the streets (for now), so as we revel in the January Thaw, we have given over to celebrations of the 10th anniversary of the Great Ice Storm. The Gazette is publishing an excellent retrospective and Aislin’s cartoon above says it all.

Sunday Jan 6, 2008

Ice storm: Day 2

Branches were falling, the lights went out and the storm claimed its first fatality

Relive the ice storm's chaos and beauty one day at a time. Today we look at Jan. 6, 1998.

• Full Story
• Hydro's man of the hour
• Ice storm changed us all
• Special Section: Frozen in Time

Passengers wait for bus on Ren. Levesque eastbound near Bleury, during the great ice storm in 1998.

Recollections of Great Ice Storm still brings shivers

Beyond their love of hockey and beer and their reputation for being nice and polite, millions of Canadians have something else in common - 10 years ago they were freezing in the dark for hours and days on end.

This weekend marks the 10th anniversary of the Great Ice Storm of 1998, when much of Ontario, Quebec and Canada's east coast suffered from one of the most devastating weather events in the country's history.

From Jan.5 to Jan. 10, a number of weather patterns and conditions coincided and produced a freak storm, the likes of which had never been experienced in Canada. more

1998

 Hon Lucienne Robillard

In the last couple of weeks, we were all united in the face of the ice storm. I would like to acknowledge and thank all the residents and volunteers who, in the name of solidarity, gave their time to help those in need. Whether it was by providing a warm meal and a place to stay, or by helping out a neighbour in need and making certain that they were not left alone, or whether you were one of the numerous volunteers in the various shelters, such as Victoria Hall, local churches and synagogues, and the local YMCA, Westmounters came together in the face of a natural disaster. The sense of community was probably never stronger than during those days, where prejudices were put aside and the basic sense of humanity led us all to pull through as well as we did.

I would like to congratulate the mayor [Peter F. Trent] and his team of city councillors, the city authorities and the municipal workers of the City of Westmount, who put in long shifts, ensuring that the situation in the city was under control, and that all residents were kept up-to-date on the latest information, such as answering queries by telephone, and by going door-to-door to warn about the water situation. Let us not forget the crews from Westmount Light and Power who, with their colleagues from Hydro-Québec, as well as Bell employees, and Westmount’s clean-up crews, worked enormous hours to ensure the safety of all the citizens was restored in the smallest delay possible.

Under these circumstances, the priority of the Federal Government has been supporting the efforts of provincial and municipal authorities in areas affected by the storm. As you are aware, the Government of Canada has organized "Operation Recuperation", the largest-ever mobilization of soldiers for disaster relief in Canadian history.

More than 15,000 Canadian Forces soldiers have been deployed to ensure the protection and security of every Canadian. Some have been helping Hydro-Québec crews to reconnect power lines, others have been helping by clearing branches and other debris.

Soldiers and RCMP officers have also been helping the Sureté du Québec to patrol abandoned neighbourhoods and encourage people to leave their homes when their lives are believed to be in danger. Various federal departments collaborated together to provide much-needed resources to help alleviate the crisis. The departments involved include National Defence, Health Canada, Human Resources Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food, and Fisheries and Oceans, just to name a few. As you can see, all the resources available to the Canadian Government were used in order to ensure that life for those affected by the storm can return to normal as soon as possible.

Although the immediate situation is over in Westmount, many Quebecers who reside in the South Shore and the Montérégie region, as well as those living in Eastern Ontario, are still struggling to survive, and they should not be forgotten in our thoughts.

Westmounters came together as a family, and this feeling was felt throughout the country. Canadians from every region of Quebec and from coast to coast across Canada, have donated money, time, and various items to those affected by the storm. I hope that this feeling of family, community and solidarity will remain long after the ice has melted.

My tribute to all those wonderful people who are fighting the storm.
from Harry Mayerovitch

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