Municipal officials in Halifax are urging people to stay home over the next 24 to 36 hours if they're able, to help facilitate the cleanup of dangerously icy roads and flooded streets after the city was hit with snow and then rain on Sunday.

The storm was followed by rapidly-dropping temperatures, the combination of which has led the slush to harden, resulting in very slick streets. 

Monday is Heritage Day in Nova Scotia, so many retail stores, banks, government offices and schools will be closed.

Officials say that with the temperatures dropping, it is not safe to be out on the roads due to the icy conditions and severe flooding on many streets.

The flooding is being caused by buried catch basins, which have been buried because of heavy snowfalls in recent weeks, compounded by Sunday’s snow and subsequent rainfall.

The city says it has noticed that once catch basins are cleared, the inside of the drains are clogged with frozen slush, meaning there is nowhere for the pooling water to go.

The overnight parking ban will be enforced overnight, from Monday at 1 a.m. to 6 a.m.

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