NEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ______January 6, 2017 Contact: Diana L. Klink 757.514.4104 757.359.1845

Tim Kelley 757.514.4103 757.871.3039

PUBLIC WORKS IN FULL STORM MODE

SUFFOLK, Virginia (January 6, 2017) - The in Wakefield has issued a Warning for in effect from 10:00 p.m. this evening until 10:00 p.m. Saturday, January 7th, and the Department of Public Works has been working diligently in advance of this weather system to treat our roadways, bridges and overpasses.

A Winter means that snow, possibly heavy at times, with an accumulation of 6” to 10”, with locally higher amounts to 12” possible, will cause hazardous travel conditions due to snow covered roads and reduced visibilities.

Public Works crews this morning before dawn began a pro-active treatment by applying a brine solution (liquid Sodium Chloride) to prevent the formation or development of bonded snow and on the road surface. Additional advantages of using the brine solution are as follows:

 Anti-icing returns road surfaces to normal faster, resulting in fewer accidents and delays.  Anti-icing can reduce airborne dust and salt .  Salt needs moisture to be effective. Applying brine jumpstarts the melting process.  Brine sticks to the road surface. It will not be as easily blown off the road by wind or traffic, so material is more efficiently used.  If the storm is delayed, salt residue remains on the road surface, ready to begin work when precipitation begins.  Crews can begin treatment in advance of a storm. Because anti-icing prevents the bonding of snow and ice to pavement, Public Works crews have less work to maintain safe roadways as the storm progresses.

These efforts will continue right up until the snow conditions make pretreatment ineffective. Public Works staff will operate on 12-hour shifts throughout this weather event. All 25 of our plows/spreaders are in operational capacity at this point and we are expecting to keep them employed around the clock through the upcoming storm and clean-up.

As with all winter events, plowing will begin in earnest on the primary roads once the snow level is sufficient for the plow blade to be effective (usually at about 1- 1/2 inches). Treatment of our secondary roads will follow our primary roads and trucks will most likely not be servicing residential neighborhoods for a couple of days after the storm if at all. It is extremely difficult for the large snowplows and equipment to access some neighborhoods due to no turning radius, dead ends and other factors. Citizens are requested to remove their parked vehicles from the roadways where possible so that snow plows are not impeded in accessing these areas. Motorists are reminded to be aware of service vehicles in the roadways and to maintain a safe driving distance.

As indicated by City Ordinance, businesses and homeowners should also assist in snow removal efforts by clearing private property for safety reasons.

The City of Suffolk subscribes to VDOT's policy and goal with regard to snow removal for non-residential streets. “VDOT’s goal is to have all state-maintained roads passable within 48 hours after the winter storm ends. It’s important to remember that passable does not mean drivers will see bare pavement. Once major routes are clear, VDOT can shift efforts to secondary roads and side streets.” That is Suffolk's goal as well.

Winter Weather Preparedness information can be found on the City of Suffolk website at www.suffolkva.us/pages/winter-weather-preparedness/.

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