County of Renfrew declares Significant Weather Event

March 10, 2026

County of Renfrew declares Significant Weather Event

In response to the Environment Canada alert for a FREEZING RAIN WARNING in effect in our area, the County of Renfrew has declared a Significant Weather Event that will impact travel and services throughout the municipality. This declaration is made pursuant to Ontario Regulation 239/02, Minimum Maintenance Standards for Municipal Highways.

A Significant Weather Event means an approaching or occurring weather hazard with the potential to pose a significant danger to users of the highways within the municipality. This declaration suspends the standard timelines required for municipalities to meet their winter maintenance objectives until the municipality declares the Significant Weather Event has ended. In each case, during a declared Significant Weather Event, the standard for addressing winter maintenance is to monitor the weather and to deploy resources to address the issue starting from the time that the municipality deems it appropriate to do so. When the municipality has declared the event has ended, the standard timelines for winter maintenance activities will resume.

The County of Renfrew wishes to note that the declaration of a Significant Weather Event is not notice of a reduced level of service or a road closure. The declaration is to notify the public that due to the current or forecasted conditions, caution is to be observed when travelling on Renfrew County roads and that it may take longer than usual to bring the condition of the roads back to a state of repair due to the amount of snow.

ENVIRONMENT CANADA FREEZING RAIN WARNING:

A prolonged period of freezing rain is expected to begin Tuesday night and continue into Wednesday. The event could last up to 24 hours for some areas. Ice accretion or build-up of 10 to 20 mm possible.

Additional information: A series of low-pressure systems will lead to significant freezing rain across parts of southern Ontario. Freezing rain may fall heavily at times. In this case, the precipitation may not freeze immediately, which may lead to localized flooding in low lying areas.

Roads and walkways will likely become icy and slippery. There may be a significant impact to the morning commute. Prolonged utility outages are likely. Significant damage to property, including some buildings and trees, is likely due to the weight of ice. Be very careful if walking or driving. Stay away from fallen power lines.