‘All hands on deck:’ Orillia puts out call for help amid record snowfall

Orillia’s mayor is encouraging residents to grab their shovels yet again.

Orillia’s mayor is asking anyone able to do so, to grab their shovels for a second ‘Shovelling Blitz.’

On Friday, the mayor said a second blitz would take place in Orillia on Saturday.

That’s after the mayor confirmed earlier this week that the first blitz would take place next Tuesday.

“We’ve got 15ft of snow, people are reaching out, asking for help,” said Orillia Mayor Don McIsaac. “It’s a safety issue and we’ve identified it as such, and we figured if we got a bunch of people together, we could tackle it in a day or two and that’s what we’re going to do.”

The mayors' call comes after a historical snowfall in the city already this winter, with over 4.5 metres of snow falling so far.

The goal of the blitz is to clear 1000 of the city’s fire hydrants.

The city said blocked or hidden fire hydrants can delay emergency response times.

We’re trying to work with what we’ve got," said Jeff Czetwerzuk, city councillor. “But if any contractors, anyone who has a plow wants to help out, we really encourage it, we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

Residents are asked to meet at 9 a.m. on Saturday at the recreational centre at 255 West Street South and again at 8 a.m. on Tuesday.

The mayor urges anyone willing to participate to email him or contact your city councillor. Residents are asked to also provide addresses of anyone who needs snow removal done.

Orillia also approved the addition of four new replacement sidewalk blowers and the addition of a new loader-mounted blower during a special council meeting Thursday.

The City also freed up $530,000 in additional snow clearing support, if needed, for the remainder of the season.