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Residents reminded to clear road frontage

Winter is coming. Get your snow tires on

“Winter is coming. Get your snow tires on. Check your coolant. Buy a shovel and chains. And remember Argo can only help you if you help Argo - so don’t leave your garbage can or whatever out where it will block snowplows.”

That was the main message for local residents from Argo operations manager Mike Anderson during a winter awareness meeting held recently at the road maintenance company’s yard in Clearwater.

Others attending the meeting included representatives from the RCMP, BC Parks, Clearwater Fire Department, tow truck operators, flagging companies, and LDM (the highways maintenance contractor for Blue River and north).

The Clearwater operation will have four trucks plus one grader available this winter, said Anderson. At least two workers will be on shift at all times.

Argo has two pits it draws from. The one by Camp 2 Road serves all of Highway 5 north of Clearwater while that at Little Fort is used for farther south.

Both pits have loaders stationed in them. Vandalism to loaders has been a problem in previous years and Anderson asked for the public’s help in preventing it.

“If I’ve lost a loader, it’s huge,” he said. “The best thing in a small community is to talk about it and tell people, “Don’t touch that loader. You’re putting your family and friends at risk if they do.”

Accurate and timely information on the www.drivebc.ca website is a priority with the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure, he said.

The expectation is the website will be updated within 30 minutes of an incident with information such as whether the highway is blocked and for how long.

If a blockage is expected to last more than a few hours then services provided to travelers could include such things as water and portable toilets.

“If you have flagging persons out, do not divert traffic onto Forest Service roads,” advised Bart Chenuz, area roads manager with the ministry. “The liability is huge.”

Mike Rowden, area supervisor with BC Parks, thanked Argo and LDM for the work they have done over the past few years.

He noted that the road to Murtle Lake is in excellent shape.

There will be a limited entry hunt after the regular moose season and so Rowden asked that the road into Wells Gray Park be plowed occasionally.

The plan is to lock the gate at Helmcken Falls on Dec. 11, he said.

Murtle River Nordics and Helmcken Lodge will be setting tracks on the Green Mountain Road this winter. Rowden asked that the plows leave space for people to park.

LDM has two new trucks added to its fleet at Blue River, reported area manager Don Campbell. The company has a new pit and loader at McMurphy, which interested the Argo staff.

“Perhaps we can work together and share the costs,” said Anderson, noting that hauling sand and salt from Clearwater takes considerable time and money.

Anyone wanting to report a problem to Argo should call the company’s hotline at 1-800-661-2025.

The line is manned 24-hours a day and, “... they are not allowed to leave messages,” said Anderson, the Argo operations manager.

 

“People with local issues should feel free to call me,” said Derek Power, the Argo senior road foreman for Clearwater and area. “I’ll call every person back and go to see them if I have to.”