A snowfall warning and sketchy highway conditions have caused tonight’s battle between the Flin Flon Bombers and Melfort Mustangs to be cancelled.
The two teams were scheduled to play Jan. 8 in Melfort, but the SJHL and the teams involved chose to cancel the game before the Bombers left town.
The cancellation is due to a snowstorm that’s impacted swaths of central Saskatchewan including Melfort. A snowfall warning is in place for Melfort, Nipawin and several other communities in the area, along with communities along Saskatchewan Highway 6, the road typically used by the Bombers to travel to Melfort. The warning covers multiple communities along that route, like Choiceland, Gronlid, Fairy Glen and Wapiti Valley Regional Park.
In total, around 10-15 centimetres of snow is expected to fall in the region, with winds gusting up to 70 kilometres an hour likely to cause visibility issues for travellers.
“A low pressure system tracking eastward across southern Saskatchewan will bring snow to a large portion of southern Saskatchewan today. The heaviest amounts are expected over the northwestern and north-central grainbelt where snowfall totals of 10 to 15 cm are possible before tapering off this evening,” reads the warning, issued by Environment Canada.
Roads remain open for travel, although Environment Canada advises against unnecessary highway driving during the warning.
“Rapidly accumulating snow could make travel difficult over some locations. Visibility may be suddenly reduced at times in heavy snow. If visibility is reduced while driving, turn on your lights and maintain a safe following distance,” reads the warning.
A date for a make-up game between the two teams is currently unknown. The Mustangs are slated to travel to Flin Flon for a game against the Bombers Jan. 11.
Not a group willing to just go home on what was supposed to be a game day, the Bombers stayed at the Whitney Forum and played a 4-on-4 tournament. A team consisting of Alec Malo, Reid Robertson, Cole Rafuse, Jack Michell, Jaxon White, Chase and Easton Haygarth, Brandon Cianflone and Jacob Delorme ended up winning the impromptu gathering.
