Toronto digs out from the biggest single-day snowstorm in its history

Cleanup efforts happened throughout the day on Monday as southern Ontario dug out from a massive winter storm that dumped nearly 60 centimetres of snow on parts Toronto and Mississauga on Sunday.

According to Environment Canada, the massive snowstorm brought about 56 centimetres of snow to Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, in the downtown core. Areas near Lake Ontario saw the most significant accumulation, the national weather service said.

Schools across the region, along with some municipal offices, were closed today and the snow-clogged streets also caused several transit delays along surface routes throughout the day.

• Hourly and daily forecast, including snowfall totals. Visit our weather hub here.
• IN PICTURES: Snowstorm blankets the GTA
• READ MORE: Toronto commuters will face major disruptions in transit, transportation due to massive snowfall
• READ MORE: Here is a list of storm-related closures across the GTHA on Monday

Key details:

• Schools and many daycares around the GTHA were closed on Monday as a result of Sunday’s storm.
• Drivers had difficultly navigating snowy streets due to significant snowfall accumulation.
• Toronto has declared a a Major Snowstorm Condition and Significant Weather Event, prohibiting parking on snow routes.

Here’s a rundown of what you needed to know about the ongoing impacts of Sunday’s storm:

6:50 p.m. - Toronto’s winter storm is on its way out

CTV News Toronto’s Lyndsay Morrison says Toronto’s snowstorm is on its way out, but residents should be mindful of the cold and the wind chill.

“We’re on our way to an overnight low of -15 degrees, feeling like -26,” due to the wind chill, she reported on Monday evening.

A yellow warning for cold remains in place for Toronto, and Environment Canada is warning of “bitterly cold conditions expected late tonight into Tuesday morning,” and “brisk winds gusting up to 50 km/h.”

- Joe Van Wonderen, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

6:45 p.m. - ‘Wind chills that will freeze flesh’

Speaking on CP24, Environment Canada senior climatologist David Phillips said he’s struggling “to find some good news” in the coming forecasts for Toronto.

Phillips said while no major snow is comng, the city can expect a lot of flurries along with extremely cold temperatures.

“We have a cold warning out for Toronto tonight. I mean -15 C, winds howling at 50 kilometres per hour, wind chills that will freeze flesh in a couple of minutes, so, it’s not nice,” he said.

“You can hardly be out there doing what you have to do. What we’re seeing is not any major snow coming, but flurries, flurries, flurries. ... I’m kind of a glass half full guy, and I’m always looking for the bright side of things, but I have struggled here to try to find some good news.”

Phillips added that the city has already experienced two and a half times the amount of snow it normally gets and 35 centimetres more than the annual total on average.

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

6:30 p.m. - TDSB says schools will be open Tuesday

The Toronto District School Board says its schools will be open on Tuesday, but “it is possible that sidewalks, parking lots and/or walkways around our schools and sites may be difficult to navigate given the significant amount of snowfall.”

The board is advising parents to plan for extra time when arriving to school in the morning.

- Joe Van Wonderen, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

5:50 p.m. - Service resumes on Line 1

The TTC says service between Eglinton and St. Clair stations along Line 1 has resumed.

It comes after the portion of the Yonge-University line had been closed for most of the day due to weather conditions stemming from Sunday’s storm.

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

5:30 p.m. - ‘We know it’s frustrating for people’: TTC

Speaking to CP24, TTC spokesperson Stuart Green acknowledged that the snowfall’s impact on transit has been frustrating for Torontonians, but said they hope to have “as much service back as possible, as soon as possible.”

“We’ve had some success today in knocking down some of those areas in the open... that were heavily impacted by the snow, and get those back in service,” Green said.

“We know it’s frustrating for people. Our obligation is to get people around the city as safely and quickly as we can and given that this was a record snowfall, we’re managing through that.”

Green added that there were some lessons the TTC learned from previous extreme snowfall events that allowed them to be more prepared today, but said there have been a number of challenges despite that.

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

4:10 p.m. - TTC service still being impacted by snow, weather conditions

The TTC says there is still no service between Victoria Park and Kennedy stations along Line 2 due to weather conditions.

Line 1 is also being impacted by the snow from Sunday’s storm, with the TTC saying there is no service between Eglinton and Bloor-Yonge stations.

Shuttle buses are running to accommodate the closures along both lines.

As well, the transit agency says a previously planned early nightly closure between Finch and Eglinton stations has been cancelled so crews can “continue focusing on cleanup and restoring full service.”

The closure will instead proceed as planned between Tues. and Thurs., with subway service on the portion of Line 1 (Yonge-University) between Finch and Eglinton stations ending nightly at 11 p.m. for planned tunnel work.

More details about how Sunday’s record-breaking storm is impacting transit around the city today can be found here.

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

3:45 p.m. - Singer Jessie J shares video about her decision to cancel her Toronto show due to the storm

Singer Jessie J posted a video on her social media channels Monday, sharing what went into her decision to cancel her scheduled performance at The Danforth Music Hall during Sunday’s snowstorm.

“My decision to cancel yesterday wasn’t quick or easy,” Jessie J wrote in her Instagram caption. “I wanted to give you a little insight into what happened.”

The video shows the singer in tears as she calls someone to say she “would rather lose the money than the people that have spent their hard-earned money coming to the gig.”

She added that she didn’t want to put her crew at risk either.

The video continues and shows her travelling to the venue in white-out conditions, and making the final call to cancel the concert once inside.

Some fans had already been waiting outside the music hall, the video shows, which prompted the singer to invite them in and sing for them briefly.

“They closed the metro (subway) at 7pm last night after I cancelled so even if people had got (there) safe it would have been almost impossible to get home,” Jessie J closed out her post by saying. “I pray you are all safe and ok today.”

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

3:40 p.m. - Garbage collection to resume as normal Tuesday

The City of Toronto says garbage and green bin collection will proceed as scheduled on Tuesday, though potential delays could occur.

They’re asking residents to set out waste on whatever their regular collection day is, and leave the bins out until they are collected.

The city reminds residents that anything left out for crews to collect should stay on residents’ property, to avoid impeding snow cleanup operations on streets and sidewalks.

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

3:15 p.m. – Downtown Toronto may have gotten 61 cm of snow

Environment Canada has released updated snowfall estimates for the GTHA based on volunteer and social media reports.

These are the latest estimates from Environment Canada:

• Scarborough south – 65 centimetres
• Downtown Toronto – 61 centimetres
• Etobicoke south – 53 centimetres
• Oakville – 50 centimetres
• Mississauga south – 49 centimetres
• Burlington – 46 centimetres
• Scarborough east – 35 centimetres
• Vaughan – 28 centimetres
• Brampton north – 20 centimetres
• Richmond Hill north – 12 centimetres
• Oshawa – 12 centimetres
• Aurora – 11 centimetres

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

2:55 p.m. - Multiple boards say school will resume on Tuesday

Toronto’s Catholic schools are expected to be open on Tuesday, the board told CP24 on Monday.

However, “there may be minor, localized impacts to school start times or operations,” the schoolboard said, adding that “school bus delays can be expected for some routes,” due to snow.

The board said that bus delays will be reported here.

The York Region District School Board also told CP24 Monday that their schools will be open on Tuesday.

- Joe Van Wonderen, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

2:30 p.m. - Service resumes on portion of Line 1

After service was suspended between St. Clair West and Sheppard West stations this morning, the TTC says regular service along the Yonge-University line has resumed.

Service had been halted at 5:30 a.m. due to “weather conditions” left over from Sunday’s storm.

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

2:10 p.m. - Snow plow train clears tracks

Video shows a snow plow train run by the Ontario Southland Railway near Ingersoll, Ont., clearing the train tracks of snow on its way to St. Thomas this morning.

1:35 p.m. - Yellow warning cold alert issued for Toronto, much of the GTA

Environment Canada has issued a yellow warning – cold alert for Toronto and the surrounding area, with wind chills near -25 overnight.

“A period of very cold wind chills is expected. Bitterly cold conditions expected late tonight into Tuesday morning,” the national weather agency said in its alert.

Mississauga, Brampton, Oakville, Burlington, Vaughan, and Markham are also covered under the alert.

Brisk winds gusting up to 50 km/h are also expected.

Environment Canada is warning residents who venture outside to coverup, as frostbite can develop within minutes on exposed skin.

- Phil Tsekouras, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

1:30 p.m. – ‘I don’t think we need to bring in the army’

Mayor Olivia Chow says that the city has not made any requests of the federal government for support following Sunday’s record-breaking snowstorm, quipping that she doesn’t believe “we need to bring in the army” as then-mayor Mel Lastman did in January, 1999.

Lastman famously made that request after the city got more than 100 centimetres of snow in a two-week period.

There has now been 88.2 centimetres of snowfall recorded at Pearson airport this month.

“The roads now, you can get from one place to another place, and so the city is not paralyzed like perhaps was 21 (25) years ago or something like that where the mayor at the time called in the army. So, I don’t think we need to bring in the army,” Chow told reporters at a press conference.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

1:25 p.m. - ‘It was absolutely insane’: Passenger at Pearson describes record-breaking snowfall

A passenger at Pearson airport told CP24 that his Sunday-evening flight was held on the tarmac for nearly four-and-a-half hours before it was eventually cancelled due to the record-breaking snowstorm.

“It was absolutely insane. It was extremely heavy snow,” Ali said from Pearson Monday afternoon.

Ali said that because he has an aviation background, he understood the reasoning behind cancelling the flight. But other passengers weren’t so understanding.

“For a normal person who does not know these things, it’s complete chaos out there. You don’t know what’s going to happen. You don’t know when you’re going to depart, you don’t know when you’re going to go home.”

Ali said the airline provided all 550 passengers with transportation and hotel credits. He said he’s going to try and make the next flight out of Pearson at 1 a.m. Tuesday.

- Phil Tsekouras, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

1:15 p.m. – City says storm cleanup will take ‘a few days’

The City of Toronto says it will take several days to finish digging out from a massive snowstorm that walloped the GTA over the past 24 hours.

“This storm will require a process that’s going to take a few days for us to move along,” City Manager Paul Johnson told reporters at a transportation yard in South Riverdale Monday afternoon.

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow also spoke and said work is steadily progressing on the cleanup.

“City staff and contractors have been actively and relentlessly plowing, and we will continue plowing non-stop, and we won’t stop until the job is done,” Chow said.

She promised that “tomorrow’s commute will be better than today’s.”

Chow said that so far, 311 has responded to 200 priority one calls.

- Joshua Freeman, CP24 Journalist

1:05 p.m. - Jackknifed tractor trailer on QEW in Burlington

OPP are responding to a jackknifed tractor trailer after it’s driver lost control in the Toronto-bound lanes of the QEW in Burlington.

Police had two left lanes blocked, but say all lanes are now reopen.

A passenger in the truck was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries, they add.

- Laura Sebben, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

12:40 p.m.- Timelapse video shows crews plowing at Pearson

A 10-minute timelapse video shows plows clearing snow at Pearson’s Terminal 1 as crews try to keep operations going at Canada’s largest airport.

12:35 p.m. – Tips for staying safe while shovelling

As the city digs out from the storm, health experts are advising people to take some safety tips to heart when going out to shovel snow.

Those with heart disease and some other health conditions should check with their doctor first.

Those who are shovelling are being advised to warm up and stretch first, lift lighter loads and take frequent breaks.

You can see a full list of tips for snow shovelling safety and form here.

- Joshua Freeman, CP24 Journalist

12:30 p.m.- Videos show Toronto buried under snow

Torontonians took to social media to show just how much they were enjoying Sunday’s snowfall. Some pulled out their cross-country skis while others enjoyed a makeshift snowslide.

11:40 a.m. – Service resumes on 501 line after streetcar derailment

Full service has resumed on the 501 Queen streetcar line after a derailment near Coxwell Avenue resulted in an hours-long diversion on Monday morning.

The streetcar derailment was first reported near Queen Street and Coxwell Avenue at around 8:40 a.m. as Toronto dug out from a major winter storm.

The TTC confirmed that regular service had resumed on the line at around 11:40 a.m.

The TTC, however, continues to deal with a number of weather-related service interruptions in the wake of the storm, including multiple subway closures.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

11:10 a.m. – Driver dead after crash near Kitchener

Ontario Provincial Police say that a driver has died after losing control of their vehicle and launching over a snow embankment on a Highway 7 off ramp near Kitchener on Monday morning.

OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said that the vehicle ended up on the highway below (Highway 8) following the incident.

The ramp from westbound Highway 7 to southbound Highway 8 has been closed while police investigate at the scene.

“This is actually the second vehicle that drove over this embankment today,” Schmidt said in a video posted to social media. “Plows are coming through clearing the highways, pushing that snow off to the side and in this case they can’t push it over the wall as it would go down onto the highway below so it is pushed up against the edge. That snow will have to be removed but it will take some time and in the meantime you can see where the vehicles could potentially ramp up over that snowbank.”

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

10:15 a.m. - TTC CEO thanks customers for their patience

TTC CEO Mandeep Lali called Sunday’s storm “once-in-a-generation” and thanked customers for their patience as large swaths of the subway system were shut down due to the snow.

Monday morning commuters were forced to board shuttle buses after service was suspended on multiple sections of Line 1 and Line 2 due to the snow on the tracks in those open-air areas.

“I know that having to wait in those conditions is frustrating, but as shuttle buses need to be brought in from other parts of the city, delays were unavoidable,” Lali said in a written statement.

Lali said that the TTC will learn from this latest snowstorm to analyze its performance and identify any gaps that were exposed by the snowfall.

- Phil Tsekouras, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

10:20 a.m.– Snow removal in Mississauga going ‘extremely well:’ mayor

Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish says that snow removal efforts in her city are going “extremely well” with all local roads cleared and most sidewalks having already had “one or two sweeps.”

Parrish said that crews have also cleared 134,000 residential windrows.

“Those are the nasty things plows fill at the end of your driveway,” she told CP24.

“Anybody whose streets have been missed, your driveways have been missed, just call 311 and we will send somebody out right away.”

Parrish said that so far 709 parking tickets have been issued in Mississauga. She said that officials are continuing to urge residents to refrain from parking on city streets in order to help with snow removal efforts.

“They (parked cars) are prone to getting damaged as the plows goes by, it stops the plows and it really damages our ability to clear the windrows at he end of your driveway,” she said.

“It is outrageous. You are really being inconsiderate if you leave your car on the street.”

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

9:45 a.m.- Snow plow tracker

Plows are out in full force across the Greater Toronto Area in what will likely be a multi-day snow-clearing effort.

Many municipalities in the region have declared a significant weather event, meaning on-street parking is strictly prohibited as crews plow the snow.

Click here to find out when your street will be cleared.

- Phil Tsekouras, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

9 a.m. - A ‘significant impact’ on airport operations

GTAA spokesperson Sean Davidson said operations at Pearson have been significantly impacted by Sunday’s snowstorm.

“It’s been all night, 24/7, crews working around the clock here at Pearson to keep this operation moving,” he told CP24 on Monday.

Although weather conditions have improved, the amount of snow is still causing issues on the airfield, he noted.

Snow-clearing continues amid delays and flight cancellations.

Davidson added that airports in parts of the U.S. and Atlantic Canada are also still experiencing operational challenges.“

Those recovery efforts can take a few days,” he warned travellers.

- Codi Wilson, CP24.com journalist

8:15 a.m. – Storm set new single-day record for snowfall

CP24 Meteorologist Bill Coulter says that Sunday’s storm will go down as one of the biggest in the city’s history with 56 centimetres of snowfall downtown and another 46 centimetres of snowfall at Pearson airport.

Coulter said that the storm set a new all-time record for the largest one day snowfall total at Pearson, eclipsing the previous record from January 23, 1966 (36.8 centimetres).

Coulter said that “Toronto really got the brunt of this one,” in part due to some lake enhancement snow.

“The ingredients were there. The cold arctic air sliding down from the arctic and interacting with very warm moist air over the tropics and that spun up a monster of a system, impacting millions of people stateside. We got the northern fringes (of that) so not only did we get system snow but we got a cold easterly wind which drew moisture off the lake and caused lake enhancement and snow squalls that sat right over Toronto,” he said. “What a winter wallop for Toronto.”

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

8:05 a.m.- ‘Local roads are a mess’

Toronto City Manager Paul Johnson said the priority for crews today will be getting to local roads and cycling infrastructure that still needs to be plowed.

“Some of our major roads, the plowing is working well in fact we can even see some bare pavement, which is great,” he said.

“The local roads are a mess. The local roads do take us longer to get to because of our priority system.”

He said snow removal will likely begin in the next few days.

“Realistically, we are going to have to begin our removal operations tomorrow and into Wednesday,” he said. “We do have to remove snow in lots of areas. We do have storage areas available.”

Now that the city has enacted a Major Snowstorm Condition, a bylaw is in effect preventing motorists from parking along snow routes.

“It is meant to allow us to clear those for transit use. It is meant to allow us to clear those areas where parking can be a problem,” Johnson said. “We will be ticketing and towing if we need to.”

- Codi Wilson, CP24.com journalist

8 a.m. – Toronto police urge drivers to stay off roads

Toronto police are urging residents to stay home if they can amid hazardous road conditions.

“If you can stay home, stay home. The roads are really bad right now and I know the city is working as hard as they can to clear them but with this amount of snow and it being the record snowfall that we have had so far it does take time,” Const. Shannon Eames told CP24 Breakfast on Monday morning. “Just stay home if you can and if you do need to travel take transit. Just try to avoid the roads as much as possible.”

Eames said that there has been an increase in collisions so far on Monday in the wake of the major snowstorm.

She said if you do need to drive, it is important that you leave significant stopping distance between your vehicle and the one in front of you.

“Give yourself some time to stop and just be very careful out there,” she said.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

7:40 a.m. – Service resumes on most of Line 2

After service was suspended on most of the west side of Line 2 this morning, the TTC says trains are now running east from Jane Station.

Speaking to CP24, TTC spokesperson Susan Nguyen said its recovery effort is in “full swing,” but warned that there are still “major gaps” in service due to the storm.

Service remains suspended between Kipling and Jane stations, as well as between Woodbine and Kennedy stations on Line 2.

There’s still no service between Eglinton and Bloor-Yonge stations or St. Clair West and Sheppard West stations on Line 1.

The entirety of the Finch West LRT is also closed.

“We do have shuttle busses running on those lines to keep customers moving… we’re working hand in hand with the city to dig ourselves out of the snow this morning, on the surface, we’re trying to provide as much service as possible, as best we can,” she said.

- Phil Tsekouras, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

7:05 a.m. - Ramp from DVP to Gardiner ‘very slippery’

Police say that the ramp from the southbound Don Valley Parkway to the Gardiner Expressway is “very slippery.” Police are warning drivers to use “extreme caution.”

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

6:50 a.m. – Pearson airport bracing for ‘multi-day recovery’

Pearson saw 46 centimetres of snow following the storm, which duty manager Andre Nadeau says has effectively cut the airport’s departure rate in half.

The airport’s departures portal shows that at least 26 flights have been cancelled Monday morning.

Nadeau says Pearson is planning for a “multi-day recovery” to clear the snow and get operations back up to speed.

“There’s still a lot of snow that that is accumulated on the airfield and on the apron. So, it’s really getting that out of the way, and it will be full swing operation. Hopefully by tomorrow,” he told CP24.

- Phil Tsekouras, CTVNewsToronto.ca journalist

6:45 a.m. – Hundreds of collisions reported

Toronto police say approximately 438 collisions were reported in a 24-hour period during Sunday’s record-breaking snowfall.

OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt says that provincial police, meanwhile, responded to about 200 collisions on GTA roads on Sunday and another 150 calls for vehicles in ditches and stuck in snow banks.

He says that road conditions on Monday appear to be much improved on most 400-series highways, though he is urging drivers to use extreme caution.

“Be mindful on those on ramps and off ramps. There is still a lot of snow on them and it is still going to be a bit of a slick drive. But the highways are looking much better today than they were 12 hours or so ago,” Schmidt said.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

6:35 a.m. - Subway closure expands

The TTC says that there is now no service between Kipling and St. George stations on Line 2 due to weather conditions, expanding an earlier closure.

Other subway closures include:

• Eglinton to Bloor-Yonge stations (Line 1)
• St. Clair West to Sheppard West stations (Line 1)
• Woodbine to Kennedy stations (Line 2)

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

6:30 a.m. - Extreme cold will linger

CP24 Metrologist Bill Coulter says that there is no significant snow events on the horizon following Sunday’s “unbelievable” storm, though Toronto could see flurries on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Coulter said that Torontonians should expect extreme cold throughout this week, meaning that the snow that fell over the weekend is here to stay.

A high of –8 C is in the forecast for Monday, with the wind chill making it feel closer to –22 this morning and –15 this afternoon.

Coulter says that Thursday is setting up to be the coldest day of the week with temperatures expected to top out at -13 C before plunging to -20 C overnight.

“It is not just a one time thing. We are looking at very cold air right through to the weekend and the reinvigoration of some of those northwesterly winds,” Coulter warns.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

6:10 a.m. – Major issues on TTC

The TTC says that there is no service on the areas of the subway system that are above ground and not covered following a record-breaking snowstorm.

Those include:

• Eglinton to Bloor-Yonge stations (Line 1)
• St. Clair West to Sheppard West stations (Line 1)
• Islington to Kipling stations (Line 2)
• Woodbine to Kennedy stations (Line 2)

Service also remains suspended on the Finch West LRT with shuttle buses running along the entirety of the route.

No timeline has been provided for the restoration of subway service.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Torontoto

5:40 a.m. - Subway service disrupted

The TTC says that there is no subway service between Eglinton and Bloor-Yonge stations due to weather conditions. Shuttle buses will be operating.

The TTC also says that there is no service on the Finch LRT due to the weather conditions. Shuttle buses are running between Finch West and Humber College stations.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto

5:30 a.m. - GO Transit operating on ‘special schedule’

Metrolinx is advising customers that GO Transit will be operating on a 'special schedule’ on Monday due to the winter storm. The provincial transit agency is also warning of delays due to Sunday’s heavy snowfall.

“Please remember to be careful on the train and bus platforms, in parking lots and structures, tunnels, and inside station buildings as they may become snow covered, icy and slippery,” Metrolinx said in an advisory on its website.

- Codi Wilson, CP24.com journalist

5 a.m. - New all-time monthly record for snowfall at Pearson

Environment Canada says that 46 centimetres of snow fell at Pearson International Airport on Sunday, helping the city set a new all-time record.

In an advisory released early Monday morning, the weather agency said that there has now been 88.2 centimetres of snowfall recorded at Pearson this month, which represents “the snowiest January and snowiest month since records began in 1937.”

Environment Canada says that snowfall totals appear to have been even higher in downtown Toronto where 56 centimetres of snow was recorded on Sunday.

- Chris Fox, Managing Digital Producer for CP24/ CTV News Toronto