While the significant weather events that were in place throughout Muskoka over the holidays have been lifted, there is still plenty of clean-up work to do, according to Tarmo Uukkivi.
In a video posted to the Town of Huntsville’s YouTube page on Jan. 1, Uukkivi, the town’s Director of Operations and Protective Services, says with the support of contractors and outside municipalities, like the City of Toronto, the clean-up will continue this week. “This is no small task,” he says. The work includes clearing trees, sidewalks, and drainage, as well as widening roadways and removing large snowbanks. Uukkivi says Toronto loaned the town two high-capacity loader blowers to help with clean-up.
The clean-up work will include sanding and salting sidewalks, he adds.
“This holiday season snowfall is nearly equivalent to the snowfall we received in the entire winter season (last year),” says Uukkivi.
Importantly, Uukkivi says to make sure kids aren’t playing in the snowbanks. “The snow is very unstable in the best of circumstances,” he says. However, with clean-up efforts well underway, Uukkivi says it’s dangerous for kids to be playing in the piled-up snow.
“As we continue to work to get back to normal, I am filled with gratitude and hope,” continues Uukkivi. “It is a community coming together in challenging times that for me defines Muskoka.”
“Thank you to our frontline teams who braved the worst of the weather conditions to keep us all safe and doing their best to return us to normalcy during the holiday season,” he adds.
While the town is equipped to handle a normal snowfall, Uukkivi says climate change is providing “new challenges as we balance the need to plan for unexpected events with fiscal responsibility.” As part of that, he believes bringing in contractors and asking for help from municipalities like Toronto will become “evermore necessary.”