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DPW, PennDOT clean-up

A winter storm dropped quite a bit of snow on the city and county of Warren over the weekend, but not so much that it was unmanageable.

Now that the storm, and the holiday weekend, are over, it’s time to dig out.

“The storm was about what we expected,” City of Warren Department of Public Works Director Mike Holtz said. “We were out Saturday morning, Saturday afternoon, and a good part of Sunday. Our crews probably put in 20 hours worth of plowing.”

Adam Elms, PennDOT Warren County maintenance manager said the temperature predictions were right on, and the county got a little less snow than anticipated — which was fine with him.

“Crews worked pretty much around the clock on Saturday and Sunday,” Elms said. “I have to give all the credit to the crews as they work very hard to keep the public safe.”

That includes those who work on the trucks as well as those who drive them.

“Rapid temperature drops are not good for materials or our equipment,” Elms said. “The mechanic staff worked to keep the trucks moving. We had air drier issues with numerous trucks Sunday morning.”

The trucks could go, but the salt they were spreading wasn’t much help at first.

“The rapid temperature drop resulted in salt being less effective,” he said. “Once temps reach the teens we really need sun to help material work. The sun Sunday afternoon helped clear roads for clear wheel tracks on our first priority roads.”

“The heavy snowfall amounts resulted in operations focusing on plowing roads to reduce accumulation for people to drive in,” Elms said. “After the storm, cleanup efforts began. Lingering issues are monitoring historical snow drift areas. More cleanup will happen with temperatures rising this week.”

The same is true for the city. When the snow stopped mid-morning Sunday, crews could focus on cleaning up and pushing the snow back, Holtz said. “We appreciate everybody’s patience and cooperation. I think we’re in good shape.”

While crews and plows are out cleaning off the roads, the city relies on residents to help — and has ordinances in place to encourage that help.

Alternate parking regulations and 72-hour parking limits must be followed to allow for thorough plowing, according to City of Warren Police Sgt. Jeff Dougherty.

Vehicles parked on city streets must be moved every 72 hours, Dougherty said. Those that are not may be ticketed. After one ticket, the owner has another 24 hours to move the vehicle before a second ticket may be issued and the vehicle towed.

Residents and business owners are also required to clean snow off of their sidewalks. City police ask that that snow not be thrown into streets.

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