Ice Storm

Dan Pollard  0:00  
There he is. Is it Mr. Ron Jenkins,

Ron Jenkins  0:02  
speaking

Dan Pollard  0:03  
Well, there, where there is smoke, there's fire, and when there's fire, there's Ron Jenkins. How was that good?

Ron Jenkins  0:07  
How are you, Dan, it's been a while since we've spoken.

Dan Pollard  0:10  
Yeah, well, you've been kind of busy. What? What a crazy time. Do you remember any time like this during your career?

Ron Jenkins  0:20  
Well, as you, as you're aware, I've had a fairly lengthy career, and this is certainly up there with one of the more significant events that we've had to deal with, for sure.

Dan Pollard  0:27  
Yeah, no, what's what was your biggest concern when you saw the forecast coming into the the weekend, and then I think people kind of let their guard down a little bit on Saturday, because it was like, Oh, this isn't so bad up here. And then everything hit Saturday night into into Sunday but when you got up Sunday morning, what was your biggest concern?

Ron Jenkins  0:46  
Well, it started for us Saturday afternoon, and as you can appreciate, we monitor the weather with Environment Canada. So we were given a heads up this storm was coming, as were our residents, probably on the Wednesday. The details were still pretty, pretty high level. Moving into Saturday, Environment Canada gave us an update, and this ice storm itself was supposed to be north of us, the large, greatest amount of ice from Owen Sound stretching over to Peterborough and Kingston area, we were to get freezing rain in the area of five to 10 millimeters, which is significant, you know, to cause icing on the roads and branches to come down. The wind was going to be very minimal. So from an emergency management standpoint, this was going to be a relatively low risk. Yes, there was going to be branches come down, but nothing, nothing like we ended up receiving. And the reason being, and we just were on a meeting yesterday with Environment Canada, was the intensity of the storm, the rain, as we all know, especially the residents to the east, eastern side of Georgina, the accumulation just continued to increase. And from five o'clock Saturday right through until Monday, our roads crews, our emergency crews and our residents. Residents felt this significant impact, power outages, trees coming down. This was a very, very hazardous storm.

Dan Pollard  2:13  
Yeah. Now what? What are your thoughts now going into this afternoon, it looks like it won't be the same accretion, however I'm looking, and those winds are expected to hit about what, 60 kilometers an hour.

Ron Jenkins  2:26  
Yes, and thanks, Dan for bringing that up. So we've driven through the town. Our roads crews and operations crews have done a great job of trying to keep our roads clear. We still have roads that are closed. What I can't stress enough to our residents is stay away from any downed power lines. There's still power lines down. Trees are down, obviously, but one of the greatest concerns right now is the broken limbs, damaged trees that are up in the canopy, with this wind coming in as you state, that could just be all that's required for that limb to come down. And you know, we've had individuals seriously hurt in the past by limbs coming down. And I've driven through this town looking in people's yards, there is just numerous, numerous broken limbs up in the tree canopy. So my concern is a those limbs coming down, and the next concern is somebody trying to go up there and dislodge that limb themselves

Dan Pollard  3:21  
and power as well, right?

Ron Jenkins  3:24  
And power, we have professional people in the in the area you need a certified Arbor to do that work I wouldn't attempt it yourself,

Dan Pollard  3:32  
man. I tell Yeah, I just, I can't remember. I remember the ice storm that hit more Quebec than than us, but it certainly has had that same impact in in our area, and you guys have backup power, etc, etc, in these situations.

Ron Jenkins  3:49  
Yes, all our stations have backup power. Our warming centers have backup power. We've opened up a reception center over in Pefferlaw at the Lions Hall. We have a mobile backup generator power in that building, the Lions Club, the service club, has come to stepped up, and they're providing meals there for the residents. This is a significant event. We spoke with Hydro One yesterday in their levels. This is a level three, the highest level. It's the worst event they've seen in 20 years. This is a province wide ice storm, and yes, we're going to get hit with it again today. It won't be as significant. We're hoping it won't be as significant, but then we didn't think the last one was going to be so I would urge everyone to be cognizant that they may lose their power again, top up their generator and again, from a safety perspective, I went to a call last night where an individual had a generator running inside their garage with the garage closed. They weren't home. Fortunately. Don't know why they did that, but the carbon monoxide levels were over over the level of life threatening. Generators must be well away from your home.

Dan Pollard  5:04  
Well, hopefully everybody does stay safe. Listen, Ron, thanks for your time, and we're wishing you guys the best. We know that you guys have been running full tilt since the the weekend, and we thank you and all those who are out there clearing the roads and making sure that people are safe.

Ron Jenkins  5:19  
No and I thank you for providing messaging to our community. That's one of the issues we have is, you know, cell services down, internet's down, so, yeah, you've you're providing a great service to our community by keeping those messages about safety coming out.

Dan Pollard  5:32  
Well, it's the least we can do. That's what being a member of the community is all about. Listen, Ron again, thanks for your time this morning.

Ron Jenkins  5:39  
No, thank you. Take care.

Dan Pollard  5:41  
Bye.

Ron Jenkins  5:41  
Bye.

Dan Pollard  5:41  
That is Ron Jenkins. He is the chief of fire and rescue services here in the town of Georgina. Again, be prepared. And you know, can't stress enough, stay away from those canopies.

• All Georgina residents can drop off tree debris at the Pefferlaw Lion’s Hall on Pete’s Lane in the north parking lot. Only tree debris will be accepted at this location and is open to residents daily from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. until further notice. It will also be open this Saturday, April 5 and Sunday, April 6 from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• For residents who are unable to transport their debris, the Town has arranged with GFL to begin yard waste collection starting April 7, 2025, for the entire month of April. Residents are reminded that the usual collection rules apply. All brush must be bundled, no longer than four feet in length, and weigh no more than 22 kg.
• Tree debris can also be taken to the waste transfer station located at 23068 Warden Ave. Drop off of tree debris and yard waste is free for Georgina residents for the month of April.

Canadian Tire Gas Station

24268 Woodbine Avenue 905-476-5945

Esso

22766 Woodbine Avenue 905-478-4474

Esso

20993 Dalton Road 905-722-9342

Mobil

20835 Dalton Road 905-596-1188

Petro-Canada

24428 Highway 48 905-722-3800

Petro-Canada/Neighbours

1514 Ravenshoe Road 905-476-4461

Pioneer Gas Bar

248 The Queensway South 905-476-7432

Shell Canada

31044 Highway 48 705-437-1445

Shell Canada

159 Metro Road South 905-989-1664

Udora Market

5 Victoria Road 705-228-8111

Ultramar

28332 Highway 48 705-437-1055

• De La Salle, Young’s Harbour, Udora Park and North Gwillimbury Parks are closed due to large hanging branches. All other parks are open. Caution is to be used.
• Fallen trees and flooding have also impacted local forests and trails. The Metro Tract at 1763 Metro Rd. N. and the Pefferlaw Tract parking lot are closed. Clean-up efforts are expected to take a few weeks.
• Georgina Fire and Rescue Services reminds residents to stay clear of downed power lines, as well as downed trees and broken limbs. If you see a downed power line stay at least 10 metres away and notify hydro and emergency services immediately.

• Telephone and cell service has been impacted. Some customers in these areas may have difficulty reaching 9-1-1 due to local landline outages caused by the storm. Customers who need to access 9-1-1 should attempt to do so with their wireless device as wireless service impacts vary within each region. Further information at bell.ca and rogers.com.

• Flooding factsheet – Preventing injuries and illness, preventing food-borne illness and keeping food safe, preventing mold, cleaning and disinfecting.
• Power outage factsheet – Food safety – refrigerators and freezers – what and when to throw out food, safe water, carbon monoxide poisoning, electrical hazards.
• Sewage backup factsheet – Health concerns, private sewage systems, preventing and cleaning sewage backup.