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“I want to say very clearly to the people of British Columbia that we can and we will do better.”

Stone said all the safety measures will be deployed before the next snowfall hits Metro Vancouver, which weather forecasts predict will be on Thursday.

Officials did a full inspection of the cables and towers of both bridges. “I’m advised that there is no accumulation of snow or ice on either the Port Mann and Alex Fraser,” he said, adding that officials will continue to closely monitor both bridges.

On the Alex Fraser Bridge, de-icing agents are being sprayed on the cross-beams and tower ahead of the next snowfall. This will be repeated multiple times to prevent snow and ice accumulation, Stone said. Because cables don’t cross the travelling lanes on the Alex Fraser, it’s rare for snow or ice to hit cars below, he said, adding that high winds on Monday could have played a role. It is also possible the de-icer on the Alex Fraser wasn’t applied early enough or frequently enough on Monday, he added.

On the Port Mann, there are 30 collars fitted around each of the bridge’s 288 cables, which drop down to dislodge any snow or ice that has accumulated on the cables. The collars were fitted on the bridge cables in 2013 after dozens of cars were damaged by falling snow and ice on the bridge in December 2012.

“The collars are dropped at sufficient frequency to ensure that any dislodged materials are small, to prevent damage to vehicles.”

This did not happen on Monday, so on Thursday the contractor will run the collar system more frequently and earlier in the snowfall to knock off any accumulation, Stone said.

There will be stepped-up monitoring of both bridges in the coming days, and officials are investigating the damage to vehicles on Monday to see if any other measures need to be put in place.

tacarman@postmedia.com

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