The cold snap that started on about Feb. 1 has affected everyone, from residents to business owners and town employees.
Last week, highs were in the low to mid -20s, and lows, with the wind chill, fell into the -30s.
Scott Chant, the town’s director of operations, says the frigid weather created some "water line issues."
For example, early in the morning of Feb. 5, frozen sprinkler pipes at the front of the Olds Municipal Library burst and flooded the area outside the main doors.
Also, during the Feb. 1 weekend, town crews received several calls from residents of mobile home parks in town.
Chant chalked that up to service lines freezing and heaters not being able to keep up with demand.
"Several other business have seen similar issues," he said.
Chant said staff have to handle equipment outside carefully in the cold.
"With the extreme cold weather it is just that much harder on equipment and this can break easily if staff are not careful," he said.
But overall, Chant says the town takes cold snaps like this one in stride.
"This cold snap is really no different than any other cold snap," he said. "We know that sooner or later they hit us and we adapt to handle it.
"Last year we saw very cold temperatures last for several weeks. This cold spell looks like it will warm up to at least the negative teens over the next week or so."
Chant said furnaces in town buildings are cranked up to keep facilities warm, but because town energy bills are based on a 12-month cycle, there's no direct effect on the budget.
"Just like anything else, the heating requirements go up to try and keep things warm, but the way the budgets work is that the energy bills are based on 12 months," he said. "We had a nice January that lowered our heating demand but now (it's) higher for this week."
"Other than that we encourage our staff to dress for the weather and stay warm."
Police have responded to several reports of thieves who have stolen vehicles that were left warming and unlocked in the cold weather.
As of late last week, the cold weather had not had an effect on the Olds Fire Department, fire Chief Justin Andrew said.
"We have been fortunate that our services have not been overly affected as of late," he said. "We have responded to a couple frozen sprinkler systems, but beyond that nothing out of the ordinary."
B & M Home Hardware has seen an increase in sales of weather-related items as a result of the cold snap, according to owner Bruce Bieber.
"Well, there's a couple of things that sell, like heaters, your electrical cords. But overall, we're down, like, 25 per cent because no one goes out (in this weather)," he said.
Sales of products to melt ice also tend to rise in cold weather but when it's too cold, that's no help, Bieber added.
"Until it actually starts getting warm, it doesn't actually really work anyways," he said.
Torrock Towing was extra busy, thanks to the colder temperatures, owner-operator Judy Schlichenmayer said.
"We've got both drivers out," she said, noting normally in warmer weather, the company only has one driver out responding to motorists' calls.
