Cleaning up latest snowstorm to take days, city says

City crews are working to remove snowbanks left behind by this weekend's snowstorm and residents of Ottawa say help can't come soon enough.

People say they're running out of places to put all the snow, and it’s creating hazardous conditions for everyone.

Snowbanks have made Rachelle Fontaine's walks with her dog, 5-year-old Fitzgerald, treacherous.

"The snowbanks have been huge and hard to get by," she says. "They're taller than me, and I'm pretty tall."

The road is clear now, but the last 48 hours were difficult for drivers too.

"The street I'm on is a two-way street but people are like, 'Is this a one-way street because it looks like a one-way street.'"

The piles of snow have created visibility hazards, too. They're so tall, drivers say they can't see around them, which makes turning corners or backing out of driveways dangerous.

The weekend storm brought nearly 24 cm of snow to the region, pushing Ottawa's snowfall total to more than 308 cm since Nov. 1.

City crews say it could take until next week before they're finished clearing all of the streets, sidewalks and snowbanks. City staff say they're confident they can get it all done.

"While this winter has been busy for snow removal operations, we have no concerns about the capacity of our various snow disposal facilities across Ottawa," said director of roads and parking services Quentin Levesque in a statement to CTV News.

The city also says it has enough space in its snow storage facilities to hold everything that is removed.

Snowbanks on some residential streets downtown have already been cleared. Ottawa resident Doug Dempster spent some time Monday chipping away at the remains, especially around the nearby catch basin.

"Last night they cleared off the street with the big machines and today I am clearing off the ice and open up the grates so the water flows out," said Dempster.

All of the snow is also causing trouble for emergency crews. Ottawa Fire Services spokesperson Nick DeFazio is stressing the importance of keeping your local fire hydrant clear.

"Over the weekend, we had a fire where two crews had to shovel out a hydrant," he said. "It took over 10 minutes to get at the hydrant, which really affected our water supply."

He says in emergencies, every second counts, and you can help keep people safe by shoveling snow away from your neighbourhood fire hydrants.

"If residents see a covered hydrant, if they can go outside and shovel it out, we ask for 1.5 metres on each side," he says.

City crews are asking for patience, saying they will provide an update on snow-clearing operations later this week. 

--With files from CTV News Ottawa's Jackie Perez.