I expect this point of contention is that the snowfall wasn't all that heavy. In Canada we typically don't think of snowfall as being heavy until you're pushing

I expect this point of contention is that the snowfall wasn't all that heavy. In Canada we typically don't think of snowfall as being heavy until you're pushing 30cms (12 inches) in a single snowfall event. Indictors suggest that they'd be lucky if they received 5cms in this single event, and have no more than 30cms from all of the snowfall events the city has received.