A house fire, heavy snow and lots of motor vehicle accidents kept Langley fire fighters and RCMP busy, as they navigated slippery roads to respond to calls overnight while a winter storm moved in.
Langley Township Deputy Fire Chief Russ Jenkins said before the snow arrived, a “mobile-home-type” house was destroyed by fire late in the afternoon of Tuesday, Jan. 16 in the 19800-block of 30th Ave.
There’s no hydrant there, so we laid a hose line [and] established a water shuttle,” Jenkins told the Langley Advance Times.”
“Apparently the the tenants had just moved out,” Jenkins advised.
“So, at the time of the fire it was unoccupied.”
Initial indications are the fire was not suspicious.
Then, the snow started coming down.
“There have been a number of weather-related crashes, he said, but “luckily, it looks like most of the general public are staying home.”
“That is really good news for us,” Jenkins commented. “That’s what we want them to do.”
“It’s actually more logistical issues, getting your trucks in and getting our our halls plowed,” Jenkins summarized.
Just as the snow began coming down, Township fire crews were called to a rescue just after midnight in Aldergrove at 264th and Hwy. 1.
It turned out to be relatively minor injuries, “nothing too significant,” according to Jenkins.
“When we get a snow storm, we do tend to get quite a few MVAs on the freeway.”
Meanwhile, commercial vehicles were being advised to use tire chains to navigate a slippery 200th Street near 68th Avenue in Langley.
Just after 8 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 17, Langley RCMP responded to reports of multiple spun-out vehicles in the area.
An advisory issued by Cpl. Zynal Sharoom said due to the adverse weather conditions, the northbound lanes of 200 St from 68 Ave were “very treacherous” at the time.
The Langley RCMP remain in the area to direct traffic and are requesting all motorists to avoid the area and find alternate routes,
said Sharoom.
Anyone with information about hazardous areas are asked to contact the Langley RCMP at 604-532-3200.
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