Meeting scrapes surface on system to clear ice, snow

FERGUS, ON -- Shawn Nelson sees a direct link between snow-laden trailer roofs and safety, and he's on a mission to create - even mandate - a network of snow removal equipment to address the problem. There is no question that the debris represents a flying threat. Layers of snow and ice on a 53-foot van trailer can weigh one to 10 tonnes, raining debris on the road below, he says. News footage culled from dash cams regularly show how dangerous that situation can be. "Sometimes it's not the initial impact of ice and snow. It's the reaction," he says of the risk. Crash through a windshield or not, the debris can force motorists to swerve into the path of other dangers.