Village Plow Strategy Kept Pace With Blizzard

An early jumpstart and a coordinated approach by response teams are why Babylon Village roads were passable early today despite unique challenges that blizzard conditions brought into play.

Village salt trucks hit the business district early Sunday afternoon in preparation, and the plows took to the roads starting about 5 p.m. to battle what would become intense blizzard weather fueled by winds that hit as high as 50 mph during the evening.

"We fared pretty well. This was a tricky storm," said Mayor Ralph Scordino in a phone interview today. He credited Village Highway Superintendent Skip Gardner and Assistant Foreman Scott Glenn, as well as the Babylon Fire Department, in coordinating efforts and keeping ahead of the storm as much as possible.

"We had seven to nine trucks out at any given time. The wind was the problem. The trucks would go through and then all of a sudden the snow would be back on the roads," said Scordino.

While the village measures just a little over two miles in scope, there are 45 miles of roadways to keep clear.

As of 1 p.m. today the first plow crew was headed home and the second was in force handling the second part of the cleanup effort. The fire department, which has been on call since the storm started late Sunday morning, kept hydrants clear and also assisted on the few ambulance calls to ensure that emergency vehicles did not get stuck.

"It's a good coordinated effort [between the fire department and highway department]," said the mayor.

Early salting of roadways yesterday around noon helped keep snowfall loosened up and slushy, said Scordino, which made for easier clearing for the most part. Icing became an issue later in the storm and impacted tire traction in plow operation.

"This is one of the top storms the village has seen. Not in terms of snow quantity, but with elements like the wind that had to be dealt with," the mayor said.

The blizzard marks the first snowfall of the holiday season. Last year village crews had already faced several snowstorm events by New Year's Day, noted Scordino, who is hopeful the number will stay low.

"We're keeping our fingers crossed," he said.