Warm hearts made the recent deep freeze a little easier to handle

With extreme cold temperatures blanketing much of the province last week and through the weekend,

Albertans had to dig deep. Layering up was a prerequisite to venturing outside into the elements, as was

plugging in the car or truck for hours before even attempting to turn the key.

For some, plugging in their vehicle wasn’t enough as the bone-chilling negative numbers on the

thermostat froze everything up solid, leaving them with a dead battery to contend with. From Tuesday

to Thursday last week, the Alberta Motor Association received over ten thousand calls from motorists

who needed roadside assistance.

For residents in Whitecourt, their rescue came from various folks, both from businesses and the general

public. Booster cables in hand, they left their warm homes and cars to help get motors running

throughout the municipality. Long-time resident Don Shaw was one of those running around town with

his boosting abilities and had already helped nine people by 10 am Friday. By noon, his number grew to

12. Two hours later, he was 18 vehicles in. By the end of the day, he had boosted 22 cars. Though this

wasn’t the first winter he’d done this, it was by far the most he’d ever done in one day.

“I don’t mind helping. I know what it’s like to need some help, and it’s there when I need it.” Shaw,

whose family has run Furniture Den for 38 years, has grown up immersed in the community for much of

his life. Hopping out of his warm truck on a frigid day to maneuver cables onto a lifeless battery box isn’t

something he felt he deserved credit or thanks for, but the countless comments on social media from

grateful community members said otherwise. “I just like to help people. People have supported me and

my business for years and I’m sure they will support me with my next adventure that I’m working on, so

I like to pay it back,” said Shaw.

Another one of the generous area residents going out into the cold to free stranded drivers was Tyler

James Fairley. “I love to help people. I will go out in this cold to help someone with a boost or a ride or

even bring them anything they may need with nothing in return but to see them smile. Do onto others

as they shall do onto you.”

For Fairley, winter is his favourite time of the year, especially the cold, making him a good candidate for

spreading community love during a stretch of extra chill. “I know it’s super cold, but honestly, I live for

this kind of stuff.” With a high of only -28, Fairley was kept busy, helping over ten people throughout the

day.

When temperatures dip, countless men and women don’t have the option of staying indoors curled up

on the couch with hot cocoa or making a blanket fort over a heat register. Many don’t even have the

option to work indoors. For those whose furnaces decide to quit or whose pipes freeze, someone must

answer the call and help, weather be damned. Farmers, plumbers, rig workers, oil and gas employees,

sanitation workers, tow truck operators, snowmakers, gas pump attendants, emergency services staff,

and all those unmentioned who work outside do so in any temperature.

While many things are postponed when the mercury dips below -30, including school buses and

extracurricular activities, oilfield employees like Ryan Woods, Jeremy Heard, Dustin Nichols, Shea

Trudzik and Dustin Roche, for example, still head off to work, with proud families waiting for them at

home. “All our oilfield workers out there braving the cold so everything can still operate! They’re the

real heroes,” said Christy Lowen.

Throughout the province, specific industries experienced weather-related issues thanks to the cold,

including WestJet, which saw nearly 90 cancellations last Thursday and over 100 on Friday. Once

temperatures drop past a certain point, de-icing fluids are rendered almost useless, grounding the fleet.

Even the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton faced problems when their emergency department and

adjoining waiting area lost heat, causing them to divert patients elsewhere in the city.

Not surprisingly, temperature records were broken across the province. On Friday, Calgarians woke to a

morning low of -38, breaking the city’s previous record of -29 set nineteen years ago. Edmonton also

broke a longstanding record, though older, by reaching down to -37, five degrees colder than the record

in 1998.

On Saturday morning, records broke again, and Whitecourt was tied for fourteenth place on the list of

the coldest places on earth, sitting at a teeth-chattering -41. When a call rang out that a carbon

monoxide alarm was going off somewhere in town, the Whitecourt Fire Department members didn’t

think twice about the temperature. Firefighters Mark De Jong, Dave Turcotte, Shaylynn Auger, Jess

Brown and Terry Corke (pictured) sent in this group shot taken once the call was finished and everyone

was safe. Even though it was disgustingly cold, all five have big smiles as they give thumbs up. It’s all in a

day’s work!

The polar vortex, which is responsible for dishing out the cold, is a large circulation of winds that usually

wraps around higher altitudes, keeping the chilly arctic temperatures where they belong. However, if

the circulation weakens, some of the vortex can spill out to lower altitudes, bringing frigid temps along

for the ride. When this happens, it can either hit quickly or hang out for a few days, and “lucky” for

Alberta, it chose to hang around and see the sights. Here’s hoping that’s the only visit we get from the

polar vortex this winter; just please don’t tell the ski hill folks I said that since they like the cold for

making snow.