Ford is operating some short shifts today (15 December) in Canada as the extremely harsh winter weather currently sweeping through Michigan and South Canada continues to pose difficulties in transporting parts.
Hundreds of motorists as well as truckers were stranded overnight on the road east of the Blue Water bridge that forms a vital supply artery between Canada and the US, leading to a major emergency response.
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The US manufacturer stopped production at three assembly plants yesterday – St Thomas and Oakville in Canada, as well as Chicago.
Short shifts are operating today at St Thomas and Oakville, while Chicago is running normally.
“It is hard to know when we will get back to normal as we could have other shortages,” a Ford spokesman in the US told just-auto. Others could be affected.
“This one [storm] hit a lot of the transport systems particularly hard. Because there is so much commerce that goes back and forth with that bridge [Blue Water] north of Detroit, it affects others.
The Ontario Provincial Police confirmed the extremely severe weather and that Lambton County had declared a state of emergency with 237 people rescued from Highway 102.
