QEII closed due to 80-to-100 vehicle collision north of Calgary

Wednesday’s wild weather made for a treacherous commute both inside the city and outside of it.

An 80-to-100-vehicle pileup closed Highway 2 between Airdrie and Calgary in both directions on Wednesday.

It was thanks to deteriorating road conditions on central Alberta highways throughout the afternoon, as a large winter storm moved through the province.

The northbound lanes began a long reopening process around 5:30 p.m.

One southbound lane was expected to start moving shortly after.

RCMP Cpl. Gina Slaney says warming stations were set up in Airdrie and motorists involved were being bussed to the centres to stay warm.

“And I know for a fact that every single member that can be is out there right now, dealing with those extra calls and that serious collision,” Slaney told CTV.

“It’s not very often we get road closures this big and in so many areas.”

There are also highway blockades near Olds, Acme and north of Red Deer.

Alberta RCMP issued a release at 1 p.m. cautioning against travel on all provincial roads “due to heavy snowfall that is causing whiteout conditions in areas.”

It said parts of southern, central and northern Alberta are affected, and that it anticipated ongoing road closures throughout the day and into the evening.

Municipal management

Calgary roads weren’t exempt from the icy problems.

“It happens really quickly, especially when you’ve got that low visibility and poor road conditions,” Calgary Police Service Staff Sgt. Rob Patterson said.

“One crash turns easily into dozens of crashes. I was out there driving earlier on, and there were times when I couldn’t see the hood ornament in front of my truck.”

The message from emergency crews Wednesday night and into Thursday is a simple one in southern Alberta: stay inside and off the roads, unless you absolutely can’t.

And if you can’t, the message becomes: leave home prepared.

With files from Damien Wood