Photo: Snowplow gets bogged down in Rankin Inlet

Even a snow plow finds it hard-going in Rankin Inlet’s May 16 storm. But blizzard conditions with near-zero visibilities and very high snowfall accumulations are no laughing matter: these were to taper off by midday on May 16, but people were still being told that everyone in Rankin Inlet should stay home. Since May 14, nearly 90 cm of snow has fallen in Rankin Inlet, and Environment Canada said another five to 10 cm of snowfall was likely to fall before the snow ends completely late May 16. Meanwhile, the stormy conditions in the Kivalliq region have hampered search efforts for Michel Pilon, 39, a worker at the Agnico Eagle Meliadine gold mine project, missing since May 14, and Alvin Kannak, a 72-year-old elder from Baker Lake, missing since May 7. Read more about Rankin Inlet’s extreme weather and its impact on the search efforts on Nunatsiaqonline.ca. (PHOTO BY DOUG MCLARTY/ARCTECH DESIGN)