Weather or not ?

Other than the below news about severe weather effects across Canada, a bit North of here, roads closed due to avalanche hazards etc ... Golden is entrapped by weather problems (mentioned in news below)

I have heard a little about weather in Oz (Keefy's area) at the moment/recently? ... too dry and then too wet ...

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew...hub=TopStories

Winter weather traps B.C. town, storms hit East Coast
Updated Tue. Dec. 4 2007 9:06 PM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

Emergency officials say residents of a B.C. town are "basically trapped" because of heavy rains that are threatening traffic along the Trans-Canada Highway.

The highway is closed on both sides of Boston Bar because of the threat of mudslides and avalanches due to heavy rain and snow. The 500-resident community in the Fraser Canyon is also without power.

"Boston Bar is basically trapped, for lack of a better description, in the middle there,'' said Lyn Orstad of the Fraser Valley Regional District.

"We have Ministry of Transportation (workers) starting at both ends. They have geotech and avalanche technicians with them and they're literally doing an assessment of the danger of the avalanche."

The Fraser Canyon area isn't the only region of the province coping with bad weather.

There are also flood watches for Howe Sound and the Fraser Valley. Forty millimeters of rain were expected to drench the Valley, just east of Vancouver, on Tuesday.

In Greater Vancouver, swollen waterways have turned the water supply murky. But officials say the water is safe to drink, although they are asking those with weakened immune systems to be take precautions.

Atlantic Canada

Meanwhile, a slow-moving winter storm still batters much of Atlantic Canada as schools were cancelled, flights were grounded and tens of thousands of customers braved the cold without power Tuesday.

Forecasters estimate a total of 50 centimetres of snow will be dumped on the greater Moncton area by the end of the day.

However, weather warnings have been lifted for much of the province.

Environment Canada expects another 10 to 15 centimetres will fall in western Nova Scotia in the Cumberland County area north of the Minas basin.

The Halifax area received more than 15 centimetres of snow while the Annapolis Valley was blanketed with 25 centimetres.

Winter storm warnings remain in effect for most of Prince Edward Island.

Storm surge warnings were issued for coastal areas of New Brunswick from Cape Tormentine to Point Escuminac. Towering waves are anticipated and residents were warned to be prepared to evacuate on short notice.

Airline flights were cancelled across all four provinces. Schools and universities in New Brunswick, western Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island are cancelled for the day.

An estimated 4,000 customers lost power in Cape Breton where both school boards cancelled classes. Some 1,800 people are without electricity service on Prince Edward Island.

More than 23,000 experienced power outages in central and eastern New Brunswick, most in an area bounded by Bathurst to the north and Moncton to the south.

Winds up to 100 kilometres per hour and wet snow are making it challenging for power crews to restore service, CTV Atlantic's Kelland Sundahl said from Moncton.

Schools and universities were cancelled across Fredericton. While most in the province is grimacing over treacherous roads and mountains of snow, some residents are excited about a day away from the classroom.

"This day is an absolute treat for to us and our family because not only are the kids off from school, but I'm off because the university is closed. It's just pure joy," Fredericton resident Ellen MacIntosh-Harris told CTV Atlantic on Tuesday.

In Newfoundland, about 10,000 people may have to wait another week before they get electricity restored, say Newfoundland Hydro officials.

Severe weather on Sunday knocked down about two kilometres of a major transmission line in the province's southeast.

In the Terra Nova-Bonavista-Gander regions, Environment Canada warns that about 20 centimetres of snow could fall by Wednesday.

The Wreckhouse area of southwest Newfoundland could see winds of up to 100 kilometres per hour.

Quebec, Ontario, the Arctic

In Quebec, the only remaining weather warnings are for the north shore of the Gaspe Peninsula and on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River from St. Georges to Riviere du Loup.

However, Montreal is still digging out from a record snowfall of about 32 centimetres -- one that could come with a $17 million bill when the clean-up is finished.

Those in southwestern Ontario, as far east as Oshawa and north to Barrie, are being warned that snowsqualls continue to be a risk today. Snowsqualls are also possible in the Fort Albany area on James Bay.

In the far north, various communities in Nunavut are facing blizzard warnings. Those include Arviat, Cambridge Bay, Resolute and Cape Dorset.

Sounds awful in the East with all the extremes and with the power outages ... can't imagine having to go 10 days in winter without power. Wow!

Ma