A combination of snow and ice made for a slow, messy morning commute across southwestern Ontario on Friday.
A winter storm that began as rain before changing to freezing rain and ice pellets and then snow late Thursday left thick ice and about 15 cm of snow across the region. That led to numerous collisions in the London-area.
Road conditions were so poor OPP closed Highway 402 between Strathroy and Lambton County. The westbound lanes between Glendon Drive and Nauvoo Road were shut down around 8:30 a.m. and the eastbound lanes between Nauvoo Road and Centre Road were closed roughly half an hour later.
“We have had multiple collisions [Friday] morning. We’ve had multiple tractor trailers in ditches and multiple personal vehicles in ditches. At this point, I can confirm we have not had any injuries,” Middlesex OPP Constable Jeff Hare said just after 9 a.m.
Among the collisions was a jackknifed tractor trailer that ended up blocking one westbound lane of the 402 at Kerwood Road just after 6:30 a.m.
Icy conditions were also a problem out on Highway 401 where Elgin OPP were called to several collisions. The westbound lanes are closed at Graham Road in Elgin County due to a collision, and in the Chatham area, the westbound lanes were closed because of a crash near Merlin Road. They have since re-opened.
School buses for Middlesex, Oxford, and Elgin counties and the Red Zone were also cancelled Friday because of the snowy, slick conditions.
Drivers are being advised to slow down and leave extra space between vehicles.
“We appreciate everyone’s patience,” said Hare.
