Greensburg gets road salt delivery ahead of expected weekend snow
GREENSBURG, Pa. (KDKA) — Many local municipalities have been going through a lot of road salt this winter, and the last few days of snow and cold have taken their toll on the salt pile in Greensburg.
The last few days in Greensburg have been gray, snowy and cold. But on Thursday, at least the sun was out. And for that, Thomas Bell, the deputy public works director for the city of Greensburg, is grateful.
"It's really good to see the sun," Bell said. "It's really nice. And you can see it tremendously helps in the aid of getting rid of the snow that's on the roads."
The other thing that helps get rid of the snow and ice on the roads is salt. Greensburg has 10 plow trucks that each carry around seven tons of salt. All 10 trucks cover 55 miles of city streets and 22 miles of alleyways in one trip before going back to refile. And in the last several days, these trucks have been refilling three to four times a day.
"The storm on Monday put down several inches," said Bell. "We were plowing and salting all day long. It just progressed. It kept snowing, covering over, and they were going back over the routes. And that's what eats up your salt supply, these small little snows that keep you going out every day. And it's not just us. It's everybody around us."
Bell says that last winter, Greensburg went through about 300 tons of salt. This year, he says crews have already gone through more than 800 tons of salt, 500 of which were used on Jan. 6.
On Thursday, however, the city's salt pile got an additional 400 tons of salt, which should help carry it through the snow and cold that is expected this coming weekend.
Bell asks that residents be patient with crews who will be back out working the next few days.
"We are doing the best we can," said Bell. "These guys are awesome in what they've been doing this past week. They have got a lot of hours in. They are tired of course. They are going home to get some sleep. But it wears and tears on you driving 10 to 12 hours a day."