Champaign and Urbana continue plowing through storm

By Katie Foody and Pat Wade

Both the cities of Champaign and Urbana are continuing to plow the streets through today’s storm, despite the fact that Champaign County has stopped plowing highways until the storm ends.

During the storm, Champaign Public Works employees will work 12 hour shifts and focus their efforts on essential streets, snow routes and streets near schools. Champaign City Manager Steve Carter said that the overtime shifts will result in an increased cost associated with the snow.

Once the storm ends and the wind dies down, Carter said that the city will try to have major routes cleared within 12 hours and side streets cleared within 24 hours. With intense winds, however, snow removal may take as long as two to three days.

Jim Kelly, operations manager for Urbana’s Operations Divisions, said all of the city’s 11 pieces of snow fighting equipment have been designated to do single runs down streets to ensure that emergency vehicles have an open pathway to every resident.

Kelly said the city estimates that it costs $10,000 per inch of snow that falls to clean the streets.

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Should the cost exceed the amount budgeted by the city at the beginning of the fiscal year, city officials will have to make decisions about where to cut funds from other city services.

The city’s equipment began going down residential streets at about 3 a.m., Kelly said, and were making their second passes down those streets around 1 p.m.

The strong winds are making the drivers’ jobs more difficult, Kelly said.

“The trouble is you drive down one street and by the time you reach the end, the snow has blown back over it again.” he said. “It’s a vicious cycle.”

Kelly said the best thing residents can do to help the department is to keep their cars off the streets by putting them in their garages, and to stay at home today.

“Don’t get mad at our snow plow drivers if your driveway gets filled in,” he said. “When he gets done plowing, he has to go home and shovel his driveway, too.”

Motorists face the dangers of ice and getting stuck in snowdrifts if they decide to venture out into the storm.

“My first advice would be don’t go out, and then you won’t get stuck,” Carter said.

If motorists get stuck on the road, they should contact the police department or a towing service to assist them. Carter added that motorists are taking their safety and the safety of others into their own hands if they choose to drive.

“You’re putting yourself at risk and the people coming to help you at risk,” Carter said.

Smaller towns and villages surrounding the twin cities have their own issues to cope with, but some officials there believe they are better off than their larger neighbors.

Peter Passerelli, assistant director of the Rantoul Public Works Department, said a lower number of personnel and equipment is balanced by the lower amount of area that needs attention in the village.

The department’s six dump truck and four pickup truck plows have been patrolling the village’s main roads since 10:30 a.m., Passerelli said.

Emergencies requiring a hospital visit are his biggest concern, since Rantoul does not have a fully equipped hospital, he said.

The nearest hospitals are located in Champaign, requiring ambulances to use Champaign county highways that have not been plowed since noon today.

Passerelli said the department has county contacts that could secure a plow to get an ambulance through if an emergency should arise.

Residents of the county surrounding the village can also be reached in an emergency using plows, he said.

Rantoul provides its own electricity and handles its own water purification in town and have the essential personnel to continue to maintain those necessities, Passerelli said.

However, as of noon on Tuesday, Champaign County stopped all plowing operations on county highways, according to a Champaign County Emergency Management Agency press release.

Citing dangerous weather conditions, the release said that plows cannot operate safely and are ineffective.

“(The plows) are making no progress at all and it was really getting pretty dangerous out there,” said Rick Atterberry, public information officer for Champaign County Emergency Management Agency.

Atterberry said that the wind is the problem for plow trucks right now, as it reduces visibility and causes snow to drift back over an area that has been recently plowed. Plows are using the downtime to refuel and make repairs, and Atterberry said he expects plows to be back in operation overnight Tuesday.

As of 1:30 p.m., all Champaign County highways outside of cities were closed, and motorists are strongly discouraged to use them. Atterberry said that motorists using county highways are doing so “at their own risk.”

According to the release, motorists stuck in a snowbank should not leave their vehicles. Stranded motorists should run the engine periodically for warmth and make sure the tail pipe is clear of snow.

Although calls for assistance are being prioritized, stranded motorists should prepare for an extended stay in their vehicles until emergency crews reach them.