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| Icy roads plague drivers

HIGHWAYS SURROUND-
ING Terrace were closed for
a period last week as freez-
ing rain caused some of the
worst driving conditions
here in years»

School buses were can-
celed and ground freight
and passenger: service was
affected. when major and
other roads turned into skat-
ing rinks. .

The Jan. 18 highway clo-
sures 100k hold just before
in some cases,
lasted until the evening, of
that day.

Even when highways
Were re-opened. transporta-
tidh ministry officials were
warning motorists to stay off
the roads unless travel was
absolutely necessary,

Those warnings contin-
ued into late last week,

Luckily,
called to any injury colli-
sions or fatalities.

RCMP highway
officer Sgt. Don

patrol

ing substantial happened.

“I guess the [transporta-
tion| ministry shutting roads
down and getting on top of

« things seems to be work-

ing,” Murray suid.
“Folks are driving prop-
erly in most regards.”

Peter Landsdowne — of
Nechako.. Northcoast, the
‘company which has the

highways maintenance con-
tract for this area, said it was
impossible to put cnough
sand ‘and material on the
roads to provide traction,
Rain cither. washed the
material off or it became
submerged as water gath-
ered on the roads, he said.
“We just couldn’t get the
sand ‘to make the difference
because of how hard the rain

was,” Landsdowne contin-
“ued, - :
Although . temperatures

did rise, driving conditions -

were also affected. by the
Still-frozen road surface,
Landsdowne added.

“The cold comes through
~ the asphalt and freezes the

rain,” he said.

Nechako Northcoast did
‘put graders on the high-
ways in an attempt to break

th»

police weren't

Murray — fi
said a few fender benders °
slowed: motorists. but noth-

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4

NECHAKO NORTHCOAST workers were going all out last week in an attempt to cope e with icy roads made
worse by freezing rain and warm temperatures. Here a loader fills a truck with more sand and salt prior to head-
ing back out for another tour of the area’s major highways and side roads.

MARGARET SPEIRS PHOTO .

‘through the icy surface so
“that new sand and salt could
have a chance to work.

Landsdowne added that
his company would review
what it did last week to. de-
termine performance.

“It was a real tough day,”
said Landsdowne of Jan. 18,
the first day of bad driving
conditions.

Stretches of highway be-
tween Terrace and Kitimat,

~in the Nass Valley .and
Hwy16 both cast and west

of Terrace were particularly

» bad. .

-Nisga’a Lisims Govern-

ment official Eric Grandison

‘said conditions were bad in

. the Nass Valley.

“But things with our roads
have improved compared to
10 years ago so it is hard to
complain,” he said.

“You just have to slow

_down,” -
Drivers on the road to

Kincolith found the first

large hill just outside of
Greenville particularly chal- -

Bhatia th Sete itel iitiint a

. Don Ramsay”

lenging, Grandison ‘contin-
“ued.

“It's called Grizzly Hill.

“It didn't take long for the
Nisga’a lo give ila name — ~

grizzly because it is so big,”
he said.

_..Landsdowne_said, Necha-
ko Northcoast would also
review its road hazard tele-
phone reporting system
in which it uses a Prince

All photos. can be picked up alter February 28, 2005.
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TAN DARD

_ 3210 Clinton St., Terrace, B.C, V8G 5R2
Contact Debbie at 638-7283

a?

George toll-free telephone
answering service.

The Prince George ser-
vice is also used .by other
road maintenance’ compa-
nies in the north but-it bes
came overloaded last week.
particularly when il came to
connectitig callers to Necha-
ko Northcoast’s own office
in Ferrace.

‘Local transportation min-
istry: manager Don Ramsay

"said his ministry would look

at) Nechako  Northcoast's
performance and response.
“T would expect they'd be
issuing themselves their own
non- compliance reports,
said.
Ramsay did send his own
people out to check roads on
the first bad driving day, Jan.
18. and acknowledged that
freezing rain would have

made maintenance very dif->

ficult.

“One of our people re- -

ported that sand put oul on
Hwy37 South to Kitimat
was, after 15 minutes, cov-

“Lawn Mowers. e AT V’s

"Tick Tock, Ti ick Tock

> Closer To

“he ;

cred with ice,” he said:

— The combination of
Nechako Northcoast’s own
reports and «those. of the

transportation ministry led to
the decision to close roads.
Ramsay also said he'd
check into the operations of
his ministry’s own road haz-
ard reporting system. .
Information on driving

conditions and road closures

is sent to a southern central
office. where it is posted
on the ministry's website,
taped for ‘a fee-for-service

telephone report and..made —
‘available for radio’. station —
“broadcasts. sos

At times the website con-
tained duplicated and ‘con-
tradictory information

the province. “
Ramsay said the central
reporting office — became
overloaded with information
as weather affected driving
conditions allover B.C,
“They. really
stretched,” he said.

gol

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Don’t Miss Out! :

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The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, January 26, 2005 - A3

News In Brief

p

Theft alleged

A LOCAL woman is due in court Feb. 8 to face three
criminal charges alleging she took thousands of dollars
from the Terrace Nisga’a Society.

The charges allege Rose Lee Pamela Lewis com-:
mitted theft, defrauded the society and forged cheques
between Oct. 1, 2001 and May 31. 2002. .

They were filed under sections of the crirainal code
indicating the value of the alleged theft exceeded
$5,000.

The charges arose from information developed by:

4 the provincial government's gaming branch. Officials
date last week had not provided more details.
The ‘Terrace Nisga’a Society. as is the case with

many other organizations in Terrace, receives gaming
money, primarily from bingos, to support various ac-
livities.

It is also the Terrace arm of the Nisga’a Lisims Gov-
ernment which is the primary gov ernment body respon-
sible for self-government, provisions of the Nisga’a
“treaty,

fa

‘Locals get award

EMPLOYEES OF the provincial transportation minis-

try’s Skeena district have e receiv ed a an award for cus-
tomer serv ice.

“The transportation ministry award for 2004 was

based-on surveys of specialized and general users of .

the northwest's
wry district manager Don Ramsay.

“The surveys are judged on our ministry's
tomer service index which is part of our service plan. It
measures certain levels of service,” he said.

- “We've done quite well,” Ramsay added of the dis-

trict’s ‘employees.
The Skeena district takes in the area from the Queen

and north to the Nass Valley.

New health boss.

A PRINCE RUPERT businessman has been named the :
new chair of the Northern Health Authority which runs _-

hospital-based and various kinds of community and.
home-based health services in the north.
Jeff Burgardt, the president of Prince Rupert Grain

Ltd.. and current board member of the NHA; took over _

from retiring chair Harry Gairns on Jan. 25 foran initial
two-year term. °

“Jeff Burghardt. brings several years experiencé as

a member of the Northern Health Board, and. decades:

of management expertise to the position, ” said health ;

minister Shirley Bond. oo: 7
Burghardt is an ori iginal board member of Northern:

Health, and has chaired the Northern Health’ Board’ 5%

finance and audit committee. He serves as a director of
the Health Employers‘Association of British Columbia,

which is responsible for employer/employce. relations o

throughout the province.
Burghardt holds an Honors B.A. in Economics from

the University of Western Ontario. «

Burghardt’s new. position docs not pay a salary. but:
does provide an honouraium of $30,000 a year in addi-
tion-to expenses. Regular board members receive hon-
ourariums of $15,000 a year in addition to expenses.

roads, ‘says local transportation minis-

own cus:

_ Charlotte Islands to-cast of Terrace, south to Kitimat ‘

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‘V8G 5R2.

2005
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