WESTFIELD—Although the snow was a day away from falling, the city of Westfield was eagerly readying for its impact.
The Department of Public Works (DPW) and Mayor Brian Sullivan have prepared for what could turn out to be a colossal storm, with a potential of up to a foot of snow being dropped on the city. Preparations include pretreating roadways, organizing the workforce for maximum efficiency, preparing possible closures and watching forecasts in the days leading up to Winter Storm Nico’s anticipated impact.
Rows of plows at Ponders Hollow Road
The DPW has started off the preparations by following the forecasts and getting its equipment and personnel ready for the snow. Upwards of 65 plows have been prepared to help with the snow removal process, with several of them coming from local landscaping and construction companies.
The DPW also makes sure that those who are coming to plow aren’t inhibited by vehicles parked on the sides of the road, so they implemented a parking ban announced the day before show would fall.
In addition, the roads are being pretreated in the hours prior to the storm, getting the roads covered with Clearlane—a sodium chloride-magnesium chloride salt mixture from Cargill—and creating a brine on the roads. This brine helps to keep the snow from sticking and makes it easier to push off the roads.
Meanwhile, at city hall Sullivan contemplated the information that came in, while also determining how to proceed with the potential for city hall closure.
A salt storage building filled to the rafters with salt on Ponders Hollow Road
“We have been keeping an eye on all the information we have been getting from the weather services,” Sullivan said via text message yesterday.
“It is difficult to cancel or delay city hall based on how we function around the needs of the public,” he wrote. “I only close the buildings if it means less traffic and potential hazards on the streets. People’s safety is our priority.”
But before Sullivan makes a call on that, the plows and their operators get ready. As the snow started to fall in the early morning hours, plows took to the streets, getting prepared for the long and arduous task of snow removal in a city of 41,000 people and 47.3 square miles.
“We will bring in as many people as we have available, it’s all hands on deck,” Francis Cain, assistant director of the DPW, said of the snow removal efforts his department does.
Cain anticipates that between the snowstorm work and employees’ normal shifts, some may work 16 to 20 hours in a row. Fortunately, they will be given breaks for rest, food and whatever else may need to be taken care of, but when snow falls the DPW doesn’t get a snow day.
The plows and their operators are tracked throughout the storm by the SnowOPS program, which was introduced by the DPW late last year.
One of the vehicles used for snow removal and salt spreading
With SnowOPS, the department is able to track their snowplows through GPS monitoring in the vehicles’ radios, which displays on one of two computer screens at the DPW’s office on Ponders Hollow Road. Along with this tracking, statuses can be tacked onto the vehicles, helping the SnowOPS operator at the DPW to keep snow removal flowing at a more efficient pace and with less redundancy.
Additionally, the department also has field inspectors throughout the city, acting as scouts to watch the snow removal in the city itself. They are checking areas, noting progression of activity and helping the SnowOPS operator in determining where to deploy and redeploy assets, while making sure that any urgent issues are addressed as soon as possible.
So when you’re out there today and you’re wishing you didn’t have to shovel your sidewalk for the third time, think about all the work that goes into keeping the rest of the city clear of snow.
