Carroll County’s Bureau of Roads Operations is preparing now for the possibility of snowy weather this winter.
The bureau, housed in the Department of Public Works, began preparations last month, bringing together officials from various municipalities and public safety experts to discuss preparations in the event of inclement weather this winter, a county news release stated.
The county has allocated $2,810,350 in the current storm emergencies budget, said Heidi Pepin, bureau chief with the county’s budget department.
While the funding is predominantly used to handle winter storms, it is also used for any other weather events throughout the year, Pepin said.
The county budgeted $2,306,590 for storms last year, but only spent $462,188. The remaining money became available for the Board of Carroll County Commissioners to use at its discretion.
If winter weather comes to the county this winter, there is a fleet of vehicles and supplies prepared to treat the county’s 1,000 miles of roads.
The county has 80 pieces of snow and ice equipment, a stockpile of 13,000 tons of salt and 31,000 gallons of liquid salt brine, the news release states. Salt brine includes a water solution that contains 23% salt sprayed on roads before a storm hits. It’s intended to prevent snow from bonding to pavement, reducing the amount of material to needed to treat the roads and helps snow removal operations.
The Bureau of Roads Operations produces the salt brine mix in-house.
There is also a team of 80 that clears county-owned roads when a storm hits.
“As storms approach, staff closely monitors professional meteorological forecasts to determine the best course of action,” the news release states. “The team is prepared to keep roads clear.”
In the event of a major snowstorm, the county has 27 contractors with 27 pieces of equipment on standby to assist around the clock.
County crews also clear debris from roadside drainage and culverts to keep pollutants out of the waterways. This also minimizes ponding, which helps make roads safer.
As preparations continue, predicting a major weather event is difficult.
“It’s always a challenge when it comes to snow,” said Kyle Pallozzi, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sterling, Virginia. “You really can’t pin it down.”
Based on the most recent forecasts from the National Weather Service, there is a greater than 55% chance of at least a “strong” El Niño this winter, which officially starts Dec. 21. An El Niño is a climate phenomenon characterized by unusually warm ocean temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean that can influence winter weather across the country.
“The El Niño will have a large effect this year,” Pallozzi said. “For December, January and February, the outlook is for slightly above average precipitation and above normal temperatures.”
