KENT COUNTY, Mich. — Local road commissions are preparing for this week’s severe weather.
“We did some anti icing in front of the storm and some of the high volume roads,” said Jerry Byrne, director of operations for the Kent County Road Commission. “There's not a lot of other things we can do except have the equipment ready and the employees already know.”
Byrne says beginning Thursday night, all 90 of the commission’s plow trucks will be out applying a sand mixture and scraping snowfall off of the area’s freeways and streets.
“Once it really starts to stick and looking at the cold temperature, it's going to be very little salt, sand for traction, but the majority of the emphasis is going to be scraping off that snowfall,” said Byrne. “It's going to be running these trucks with the blades, probably your front blade and the wing, to keep the snow off the road the best we can.”
It’s the third system since November, but he calls this one a more serious threat because of the wind.
“This storm is probably different from a visibility standpoint,” said Byrne. “The roads will probably be passable, we think we can handle the snow, but when you can't see and we can't see, you probably shouldn't be out there.”
The road commission in Ottawa County has similar predictions.
“It’ll be kind of an effort to use multiple tools that we have just to make sure we kind of stay on top of things and provide as best conditions as possible,” said Alex Doty, communications administrator for the Ottawa County Road Commission.
Doty says this week the 52-truck commission stockpiled and repaired equipment in anticipation of what’s to come.
He asked people for patience as their crews deal with the weather.
“If you absolutely do have to head out, make sure you drive for conditions,” said Doty. “Be mindful of your surroundings. If you see our plow trucks out there, make sure you give them plenty of space.”
