Pittsfield Snow Clearing During First Storm Went Well, DPW Says
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — At least half a foot of snow was dumped on Pittsfield during Tuesday's storm, and plowing went fairly smoothly, according to the Department of Public Works commissioner.
There was a whiteout on Tuesday morning as the storm started, and snowfall continued throughout the day. The Pittsfield Public Schools, along with other local districts and Berkshire Community College, cancelled classes, and the Parks and Recreation department launched a snow sculpture contest to engage the community.
Pittsfield saw at least 6 inches of snow, and in-house employees and contractors worked through the night to clear roads.
"In general, our operations went fairly smoothly. We had proper staffing on our main routes. We used our highway crews starting around 4 a.m. on Tuesday," Commissioner of Public Services and Utilities Ricardo Morales said on Wednesday.
"We had that first shift working from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. The second shift started around noon, working until midnight, so we had an overlapping shift for the bulk of the storm in the early hours of the afternoon, which was very beneficial."
There are vacancies in the highway division, he reported, and those had to be filled by contractors. The city was able to hire 27 of the 30 contractors needed and used in-house plows from other city departments to fill the gap.
Pittsfield is divided into 30-32 neighborhood quadrants, which contractors clear, and the highway crews cover the main roads. Morales said the neighborhoods had proper coverage starting around 8 a.m. on Tuesday, and many worked into the night.
About half of the contractors don't have spreaders for salt, and cannot treat the roads while they are plowing. This means that their pace is slower than a combination plow/salt vehicle.
A third shift started around midnight, and on Wednesday morning, crews were still working through some quadrants, making sure they were cleared to blacktop.
The effort was recognized by Pittsfield's human resources department, which thanked the "snowstorm heroes" in a social media post:
"We want to extend our deepest gratitude to our incredible plow truck drivers and every team member who worked tirelessly during the recent snowstorm. Your dedication, long hours, and commitment to keeping our roads, facilities, and community safe and accessible do not go unnoticed!"
On Tuesday, the Parks and Recreation department announced an all-ages snow sculpture contest for the day off. Community members shared photos of themselves with their creations on Facebook, and the winner is the page's banner for the month of December.
The winners, Emmy and Gracie, stood on either side of a snow-woman they made named Snowy. More than 20 people submitted photos for the contest, and the department said they will hold another one on the next snow day.
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