Seniors say they are forgotten by Montreal

PHOTO Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
The streets adjacent to the residence of Diane Joanisse, in the area of the South-West, are covered with plates of ice, like those at the Plateau-Mont-Royal.

Vincent Larin

Sunday, 28 January, 2018 21:06

UPDATE
Sunday, 28 January, 2018 21:06

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Seniors stuck in them since the ice storm transformed sidewalks into skating rinks Tuesday feel forgotten by the City of Montreal.

“Yes, a fall on the ice, it can hurt, but in addition, when it is old, it may break a hip and see our living conditions to deteriorate sharply “, is concerned about Diane Joanisse.

Like other tenants of the residence Côte-Saint-Paul, in the neighbourhood of the South-West, the 68 year old woman limit his output to the strict minimum for six days.

“The other day, I preferred to take my self to make me two blocks away “, she explains.

PHOTO VINCENT LARIN

Diane Joanisse, in the area of the South-West.

Montreal will excuse

The administration of Valérie Plante has done his mea culpa for having postponed the loading of the snow, which was finally to begin on Sunday evening.

A posteriori, we could declare [the loading of the snow] before. This was a bad choice on my part and I apologize for that ! ” was written on Saturday on Twitter the mayor of Verdun and responsible for snow removal, Jean-François Parenteau.

“The weather forecast, it was a thaw that would allow us to not necessarily do a loading which, as I mentioned, costs 15 million dollars,” explained the mayor Valérie Plante, Sunday, confident that she fell to the ground sliding. Mrs. Plant said that he needed help to get up.

“It’s been five days, Montrealers are waiting for such a decision, five days to deal with the icy sidewalks and streets clogged by the snow not picked up. […] Administration Plant-Dorais going to have to understand that the security of citizens must come first before everything, ” replied the leader of the opposition at city hall, Lionel Perez.

The paramedics were overwhelmed on Sunday when the number of calls for falls due to the ice has quadrupled, from about 10 for a typical day of winter, to over 40 in the late afternoon on Sunday.

“We see a lot of fractures to the wrist and shoulder. It is important to restrict movement, especially the elderly, ” said the chief, operations, Emergency Health, Valerie Tremblay.

Photo PAUL POULIN

Valérie Plante, Mayor

For a long time

The ice could still take a few days before melting so that Environment Canada expects temperatures around the normal season until Wednesday, which is between -11 and -13 degrees celsius.

The mercury should, however, be closer to the freezing point Thursday thanks to a slight rise that will sweep the south-west of the province.

A light snow expected in the night from Monday to Tuesday, could also complicate the situation by covering the sheets of ice that persists in the soil, indicates Bruno Marquis, a meteorologist at Environment Canada.