Calgary was hit by a record-breaking 40 centimetres of snow in October, and nearby cities sent their plows, sanders and workers to help dig the city out — and the city paid those municipalities back, to the tune of $210,000.

About 75 per cent of that money, $155,000, went to Edmonton, which sent:

60 workers.

15 front plows.

15 belly sanders.

3 foremen.

1 mechanic.

Medicine Hat, Red Deer and Okotoks also sent aid (13 operators and 10 pieces of equipment) that started on the afternoon of Oct. 2, and crews from Edmonton started work the next morning.

City roads maintenance manager Bill Biensch said given the worst part of the storm hit Calgary, the other municipalities were able to pitch in while Calgary's private contractors were busy.

"The City of Calgary does make use of contracted services but at that time, those graders and some of that equipment were still out on road contracts and therefore could not be quickly brought in to address our snow and ice concerns," he said.

"They couldn't move their equipment quickly from the field, where it had been working on road construction, in to assist us with our snow and ice control, where you had places that were prepared and ready to deal with snow and ice control had the equipment sitting and ready to go."

The snowfall in October 2018 in Calgary was well above normal for the season. (City of Calgary)

The Trans-Canada Highway was shut down for hours, stranding motorists, and there were hundreds of vehicle collisions around the city.

Heavy snowfalls can come at a big cost, with millions spent on some major snow events. The city's snow-clearing budget was $39.2 million last year.

Biensch said the storm was the first time in his three decades of working for the city that they've had to call for assistance from outside Calgary.