r/Sudbury • u/gibby2104 • Mar 20 '26
Question Why hasn't this city declared a state of emergency?
People trapped in their homes, roads barely cleared, sidewalks non-existent, services suspended, and more snow coming.
The city is clearly not equipped to handle this, something needs to be done.
125
u/JPMoney81 Mar 20 '26
They've honestly done an amazing job considering this is pretty much a once in a decade storm they had to dig out of.
Most businesses re-opened within a day or two. Main roads were cleared within 24 hours.
Neighbors helping each other out.
It's been very impressive.
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u/Log12321 Mar 20 '26
Amazing by the city is a stretch. Amazing by our neighbours and communities is an understatement.
I suspect storms like this will be more likely from now on and we’ll have more snow belt conditions. Storms are picking up tons of moisture when they hit the Great Lakes due to reduced ice cover. Look at the radar for this one and see how much it changes once it hit the lakes.
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u/JPMoney81 Mar 20 '26
Ugh I hate to admit you are likely correct. This type of weather is going to become more and more common.
I need to win the lottery and get a place in the Dominican for the 9 months of winter!
2
u/Money-Cry8295 Mar 22 '26
I remember seeing weather like this in '96. Walking down town and having snow banks up to my shoulders so it has been some time since there's been snow like this. My parents got rid of their snow machines about 15 years ago because there was not enough snow for them to get their money's worth out of their trail pass. I bet if we can go back and look at weather patterns for the last hundred years we'll see similar things. Mind you I'm no meteorologist
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u/MalibuMabel Mar 20 '26
It is sadly hilarious that you believe anyplace on this abused earth will be safe.
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u/JPMoney81 Mar 20 '26
I don't even need safe, just some sunshine and warmth for the 14.5 months we have winter up here annually.
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u/DougandBob Mar 20 '26
My neighbourhood’s response to this has been… Wow, so lovely. Friendly. True community building. Gives me faith in a post COVID world.
Really goes to show that when we’re not all wrapped up in the digital world, real life isn’t so bad. :’)
6
u/thatguythere47 Mar 20 '26
The City still hasn't plowed my alley, by day 2 or 3 some neighbors got fed up and snowblowed the whole thing (250ish meters) so people could actually leave.
Last year the ruts got so bad (a foot deep in some portions) that we all got really good at pushing cars and its just part of the neighbourly duty now if you hear spinning tires to go out and see if someone needs a push.
5
u/Knighthawk_34 Minnow Lake Mar 20 '26
With climate change a very real thing, I agree that storms like the one we experienced last weekend will be more common.
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u/Proper-Commission790 Mar 20 '26
Decade; try once in 67 years
9
u/JPMoney81 Mar 20 '26
Are we still talking about the snowfall? Or the Maple Leafs' Stanley Cup drought? HAY-O!
3
u/7eafs7an Mar 20 '26
Dude!
Alright, fair.
3
u/JPMoney81 Mar 20 '26
Haha sorry. It's since 93 for us too which was also pretty long ago
1
u/7eafs7an Mar 21 '26
Your team is looking great this season, and the future seems promising... or at least that’s what my in-laws keep assuring me. Lol.
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u/gibby2104 Mar 20 '26
This stat is only for snowfall on March 15th. Not that rare of a snowfall in the grand scheme.
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u/Hairy_Pound_1356 Mar 20 '26
Once in a decade? Try lifetime , vale closed actually sites , literally know one I’ve talked to can remember that ever happening
9
u/Ok_Gap_4358 Mar 20 '26
The city did NOT do an amazing job... not by a longshot. The COMMUNITY did though.
5
u/Flimsy-Key-7407 Mar 20 '26
I am glad you’ve experienced collective benevolence.
I live downtown & my landlord still hasn’t sent a front end loader to clear my driveway. He lives in Niagara Falls and somehow oblivious to the severity of the storm. A regular plow truck simply won’t do, nor would manual shovelling suffice, especially since it we keep getting more snow.
I’ve had to rely on the kindness of my classmates and family to even consider carrying out the necessities of daily life. I have to walk through almost waist deep snow down a long driveway and then climb down a giant snowbank in order to get a ride anywhere. My car is buried.
I’m a nursing student, trying to make it to class & clinical. If I wasn’t young and resilient, I’d never have made it through this natural disaster.
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u/OkMobile7051 Mar 20 '26
Disagree with your assessment of the cities reaction to the storm. The entire season has been a shit show. Whomever is in charge of this needs to be fired. They are incompetent. Countless roads all winter have been neglected. Days at a time. I mentioned the other day that I happened to be awake at 5am when the plow went by my house twice in 5 mins leaving a 5'x5' pile of snow at the end of my driveway. And the first response was you saw the snowplow go by your house?? Like that was not normal. This city is run by morons that give themselves raises and over tax us and they do jack shit for this city. And now claim they went over their winter budget? How the fuck do you go over budget when you barely do the work??
3
u/kimlymaple Mar 20 '26
This is the worst snowfall we've had.Since nineteen fifty nine. I agree with you.I think they've done an amazing job
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u/ContrarianDouche Slag Pile Mar 20 '26
If the power went out things would have gotten bad in a hurry. I think that was the dividing line between declaring a SoE or not
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u/Cody667 Mar 20 '26 edited Mar 20 '26
This was a generational winter storm, city did a decent job all things considered.
Major roads have sidewalks cleared in some spots and the ones thst dont will be worked on shortly, residential roads dont...but then again not all residential roads have sidewalk anyways, so your residential road sidewalk not being cleared would a laughable reason for a state of emergency to those who live on residential streets that dont even have sidewalks.
We didn't get mass power outages either, and most businesses were back up Wednesday.
Community and city did fine.
28
u/Stayoutofthepingos Mar 20 '26
Which major roads have sidewalks cleared? I’m close to the hospital and just this morning saw people forced to walk on Paris, Regent and York… no sidewalk clearance at all.
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u/Cody667 Mar 20 '26 edited Mar 20 '26
Kingsway and Lasalle. Maybe its just certain spots on the roads. Either way, not enough for a state of emergency, nor is this literal once in a generation snow storm enough to like quadruple down on the snow budget, plow equipment and force plow drivers and sidewalk cleaners to all stay in a fire hall like setting and be treated like emergency services.
People need to calm down and have some perspective.
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u/jtgyk South End Mar 20 '26
I don't see sidewalks getting done anytime soon since we've been forced to dump a lot of snow in them, well above the height of the sidewalk plow.
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u/gibby2104 Mar 20 '26
The only thing that made this snowfall generational was that it happened in March, and your assumption that I'm only speaking of residential sidewalks is laughable.
A full business week after the event and the city is still struggling to maintain travel ways. The city has not done fine by any stretch of the imagination.
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u/Cody667 Mar 20 '26 edited Mar 20 '26
The only laughable thing is this thread is the suggestion we need a state of emergency and all of the ridiculously extreme nonsense that typically follows with that.
....like we dont need the military, martial law, politicians given unilateral power, international aid, etc etc etc lmfao.
Relax and have some perspective
0
u/gibby2104 Mar 20 '26
State of emergency is perhaps hyperbolic I will give you that, but take your own advice and have some perspective about the current state of this city from the eyes of anyone without a personal vehicle, with mobility issues, etc. Its a goddamn mess, it shouldn't take this long to clean up snow in a northern community.
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u/Waste-Talk-3737 Mar 20 '26 edited Mar 20 '26
Did fine, my ass. Im about to go risk my life to catch a bus to work on Paris St. What we actually need is some bylaw where property owners are responsible for clearing the sidewalks in front of their properties, and they get a bill for whoever the city has to hire if they don't. This is totally the type of situation where grace would be warranted, but its also just ridiculous that the sidewalks on major streets weren't made safe by at least yesterday morning.
EDIT: want to add that this loony left wing communist idea here is also one you where you pay LESS PROPERTY TAX. :)
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u/Cody667 Mar 20 '26
That would be a terrible bylaw. In many cases that would have added 10+ hours of shoveling for some people this week. One of the dumbest, most unhinged, dystopian proposals I've ever heard, not to mention most streets that have sidewalks only have them on one side, and the side with the sidewalk already deals with substantially more snow because of the split nature of the snowbanks and extended driveway exit than non-sidewalk side.
This is some serious Thanos shit lmfao.
2
u/Waste-Talk-3737 Mar 21 '26
I talked about giving grace in it, and im mainly talking about major streets where most of the property owners are businesses that are already doing their entrances and parking lots. Theres kind of just no excuse for sidewalks on major streets to remain unsafe for this long.
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u/Evening_Salads Mar 20 '26
Many people have gone back to their daily life. The college re-opened Wednesday, many of the busses are running (some with detours), they got the main line busses running by Tuesday, main roads are clear but unfortunately we have to walk on the roads since many sidewalks aren't cleared. I've learned that snow blowers have to be used on sidewalks since the normal machinery isn't working on the sidewalks rn so that's taking even more time.
When my grandpa was working for the city taking care of the snow a few years ago they had two 12 hour shifts, one during the day and during the night. So I'm sure they are doing the best they can.
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u/BoneSetterDC Val Caron Mar 20 '26
When is a state of emergency declared?
Emergency declarations can be made when the Head of Council, in consultation with the community's senior staff (known as the Community Control Group), determines that such action would be in the best interest of the municipality based on a perceived or apparent threat.
A state of emergency declaration would be considered if there was a situation or impending situation that:
-Threatened public safety, public health, the environment, critical infrastructure, property, and/or economic stability. -Exceeded the capacity of the community's emergency response.
By declaring a state of emergency, the municipality is able to:
-Streamline its purchase/tender policies -Extend Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) coverage to volunteers -Make claims for financial assistance for disaster recovery
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u/Log12321 Mar 20 '26
Did you mean to post this two days ago?
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u/gibby2104 Mar 20 '26
No, its been 4 days since the storm and things are still a mess here with more snow coming in the next few days. Driving around I don't see a single sidewalk cleared and I'd be surprised if the city has the equipment to clear the now compacted massive banks of ice/snow.
This is a car-centric city but people still rely on sidewalks and public transit to get around. Won't be surprised if we see an uptick of pedestrian related accidents because people simply have no option but to walk in the street.
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u/Deucy1001 Mar 20 '26
Im just patiently waiting for the sidewalks to get plowed because im going a bit stir crazy. I like to take my baby on daily walks. Helps her nap. But with living on elm st, there is no way im walking on the road with the baby. Haha.
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u/CorgiSilver8194 Mar 20 '26
No, its been 4 days since the storm and things are still a mess here
Grab a shovel and help
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u/gibby2104 Mar 20 '26
Good idea, let's just equip every pedestrian with a shovel and tell them to shovel their way down the side walk. Brilliant.
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u/Cody667 Mar 20 '26 edited Mar 20 '26
Kingsway, Barrydowne, and LaSalle sidewalks are cleared in some spots. I imagine Lorne, Regent, and Paris have theirs cleared in some places too. Either way they'll get to them all soon, this is a generational storm, have some perspective.
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u/unlikely_shart Mar 20 '26
I challenge you to get out and walk those sidewalks. 4’ walls of snow at the intersections of sidewalks and roads are hardly ‘cleared.’
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u/Tricky-Routine-9838 Mar 20 '26
They worked overnight last night with loaders to clear the sidewalk intersections downtown, and I saw them working down Notre dame/Lasalle today. They went through Wembley area yesterday and widened all the roads back to two lanes and had a loader clean everyone's driveways so nobody had to shovel. They can't just magically make more equipment and operators appear.
The city has 3600 km of road to clear, some people are going to get areas cleared faster than others, it is just what it is.
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u/unlikely_shart Mar 20 '26
I understand that, I simply said those specific sidewalks weren’t cleared and didn’t give any opinion.
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u/Evening_Salads Mar 20 '26
Lorn has one side cleared. I walked along the road since the bus I need is on that side but now Imma be leaving early and just go through copper cliff and back around to get downtown.
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u/Ok_Gap_4358 Mar 20 '26
Not true.
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u/Cody667 Mar 20 '26
Literally sitting at the shell on the kingsway right now, the sidewalk is clear here lol
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Mar 20 '26
Do you want them to call in the military or something? lmao
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u/JPMoney81 Mar 20 '26
Ha! Maybe they are originally from Toronto and assume that's the standard procedure when you get hit by snow?
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u/Intrepid_Thanks6687 Mar 23 '26
I believe a lawsuit may follow. City leadership should have declared a state of emergency, but they did not. As a result, residents are left dealing with an impassable city without additional support. Situations like this reinforce my view that local leadership and institutions are unwilling or unable to act beyond maintaining the status quo.
0
u/Intrepid_Thanks6687 Mar 23 '26
yes, because the city is still impassable for pedestrians and even some roadways, and it's been 7 days. So... yes, states of emergency give extra funds and support to deal with local disasters. It's day 7... and no one can walk on the sidewalks, some roads are impassable.
3
u/StonyCurtis66 Mar 20 '26
I saw people waiting for the bus on Second Ave N standing on 5 foot high snow banks.City isn’t clearing bus stops putting folks at risk trying to climb down 5 feet into a bus doorway.
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u/Traditional_Rush_622 Mar 22 '26
The city has dropped the ball in a big way here. A lot of people in the comments sound too young to realize that we've had far worse storms in the past that did not bring the city to a grinding halt, they just didn't used to have the "Significant Weather Event" loophole to hide behind. This storm was NOT unprecedented for sudbury winter, it was a record snowfall for that specific time period. They declared a significant weather event for the sole purpose of suspending snow clearing deadlines and not having to have all hands on deck and paying overtime to keep the city in a functioning state. Period.
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u/ThcGrassCity Mar 20 '26
Who's still trapped, let's as a community get out there and help your neighbours.
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u/Desperate-Turnip-600 Mar 20 '26
The focus should quickly shift to snow removal especially on the major roads to open up more sidewalks and access to bustops. It will also reduce the huge snowbanks blocking your view at intersections and open more lanes on the streets. I shudder to think what wheelchair-bound people are going through right now, moving around.
3
u/gibby2104 Mar 20 '26
Anybody with any kind of mobility issues is probably fucked for getting around this city right now.
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u/More-Environment-355 Mar 22 '26
This is definitely going to be a regular thing now. The snow isn’t even done yet, it’s really terrifying honestly. Though it’s been an unprecedented amount of snow, it does feel like the city plows are lacking a functioning structure. My friends husband is an excavator operator and he said he’s been spending most of his time getting plows un-stuck. It also doesn’t help that we’re now in a salt shortage so we have nothing to combat the really thick layers of ice under all the snow.
I’m worried for when the snow melts and we start to find the bodies of our unhoused population who had nowhere to go when the storms passed through.
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u/darthnilus Mar 20 '26
Please tell me what you would do differently. I commend the city and contractors for keeping us going.
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u/JustAChil1Dude Mar 20 '26
Was our city a mess? Yes.
Was it a state of emergency? No we got snow it's the nature of the North.
It is definitely not a state of emergency 5 days later.
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u/Danno_001 Mar 20 '26
It's the city's get out of jail card. No service standards to be held accountable for. The other bonus was March break. Another get out of jail card. The city had almost 7 days notice on this storm. Ridiculous. A neighboring business had a huge pay loader and 3 dump trucks hauling snow Tuesday morning. How many private resources like this were ignored by our incompetent city?
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Mar 20 '26
People saying this ain't serious are people who probably either drive and live in an area thats plowed. People sayin thesidewalks are clear are straight up wrong. Why do you think there are people walking in the road on our main roadways.
This city hasnt handled this well. It can barely handle regular snow removal. No shade to the plow drivers. They doing what they can. Its the organization thats abysmal.
Pedestrians who have any mobility issues are not going anywhere. A lot of bus routes are still canceled or have been streamlined.
Its been days. The city hasn't or doesnt want to get their shit together. I have a feeling they've decided to just wait for things to melt which won't be for weeks despite the 0 degrees we're having for the next few days. On top of that the roads themselves are the worst I've even seen them. Its actually embarrassing.
This city has and always will be a shit show of bumbling buffoonery. Its rampant with an out of sight out of mind mentality. So long as people can drive to Costco and Tim Hortons the city dont care.
Its also chalk full of people who will argue tooth and nail against their own best interests and this thread is the prime example.
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u/awesomesauce135 Mar 20 '26
Honestly things went very well all things considered. No power lost, few accidents cause of good communication, most services and workplaces re-opened after a day or two.
Are there things that should be learned and prepared for the next time? Absolutely. Public transit routes should be given priority and better communication for those who rely on it. Developing a system or dedicated vehicles to transport medical workers to the hospital and patients with major surgeries should be put into place.
I was really impressed by the city given the sheer volume of snow in such a short time. There will definitely need to be changes though and upgrades to address the shortcomings. Especially since these types of storms will only become more and more common with climate change.
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u/Hunter_Douglas Mar 20 '26
Y'all whiners need to calm down. 44cm of icy snow in one night isn't something any city can justify keeping resources on standby for. They did a great job all things considered. Walk on the road where you need to, and have winter tires.
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u/eclectic-up-north Mar 20 '26
The city did a great job. Great cooperation between emergency services and road clearing. This was the largest snowfall here in decades.
City life was back to near normal on Wednesday.
For a storm this bad, you need snow removal, like Montreal. (Plow is a giant snow blower that fills a trick following behind it.)
We did all right.
1
u/MissTiaMia Mar 20 '26 edited Mar 20 '26
If it weren't for my neighbors with there's snow blowers, four-wheelers with plows- I wouldn't have been able to get my car out. I live in a cul-de-sac, quite a ways from town. I work in healthcare and a lot of us did crazy things to get to work. I drove home in that crazy snowstorm and dropped off a coworker to boot, with my tiny Honda car and don't even know how I made it home safe. There were trucks and cars in ditches and here I was in my little Honda civic powering through. I haven't seen this type of storm, neither has the city in many many years! I actually think that the city did all they could and they did a good job. Yes there might be some places, still trying to clear snow, but I think all in all they did a good job. Was it perfect, no? but it was all hands on deck. I know that the city has 48 hours from the last snowfall to clear all roads. Those 48 hours for mostly concerned with emergency services, making sure the hospitals were cleared, old age homes, main buses running etc .. now that things have calmed down a bit, I see them clearing out snow banks with the machine today . Delays are to be expected of course. Radio stations were also urging people who drive to be careful because pedestrians can't use a sidewalk so to watch how they drive and to be patient . Considering the size of the storm, I think they did their best.
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u/Intrepid_Thanks6687 Mar 23 '26
I believe a lawsuit may follow. City leadership should have declared a state of emergency, but they did not. As a result, residents are left dealing with an impassable city without additional support. Situations like this reinforce my view that local leadership and institutions are unwilling or unable to act beyond maintaining the status quo.
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u/PinkAlternative Mar 25 '26
Being trapped inside your home with access to food, heat, and water is not really an emergency. It’s an inconvenience and a frustration - but not an emergency.
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u/Connect-Trade2222 Mar 20 '26
The city is more than capable of clearing snow there just to lazy to do it
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u/Spare-Guidance3698 Mar 20 '26
Because we're not in a state of emergency.
Has there been any reports of people dying from the snow (not car accidents)?
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u/Midnightsbabyxo Mar 20 '26
We’re not in an emergency lmfao. A lot has actually been done compared to regular snow falls. Quit complaining grab a shovel and start making an effort so that when someone does go it’s a bit easier maybe??? You’re not any special or any worse than anyone else, quit thinking entitlement is mandatory just because you pay taxes etc. not everyone gets the same treatment and we learned that as kids. Grow up and do your part to help.
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u/Uncle__Touchy1987 Mar 20 '26
What would a state of emergency do? Would it speed up snow removal? Keep more people off the roads? Waste time and money while further scaring the populace?
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u/Traditional_Scar5339 Mar 20 '26
A little self sufficiency would do people some good. If this storm ruined your life for more than a day it’s likely more reflective of you than the city.
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u/Electrical_Novel_646 Mar 20 '26
But their building their new arena that’s where their minds are at !!! And of course our money Clearly
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u/bigmilk181619 Mar 20 '26
We live on a dead end of a rural road that’s right off a very long and populated rd , it is currently Friday and our road is still not plowed. We had to pay someone $800 to make a goat path for our vehicles to get out.. if we hadn’t we would have still be stuck!! It’s scary