WIND CHILL & FROSTBITE WARNING

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Frostbite stages:

  • First degree: ice crystals forming on your skin
  • Second degree: your skin begins to feel warm, even though it is not yet defrosted.
  • Third degree: your skin turns red, pale, or white.
  • Fourth degree: pain lasts for more than a few hours, and you may see dark blue or black areas under the skin. See a doctor immediately if these symptoms arise. Gangrene is a real threat.

Hypothermia occurs when a person’s body temperature is below 96 degrees, and temperatures as low as 60 degrees can cause hypothermia if someone isn’t properly clothed.

Remember these tips to help prevent hypothermia:

  • Dress in layers
  • Always wrap up well when going outside in the cold.
  • Set your thermostat to at least a toasty 70 degrees during cold weather.
  • Avoid extensive exposure to breezes and drafts.
  • Keep plenty of nutritious food and warm clothes and blankets on hand to help ward off the winter chill. You’d also be wise to wear a warm hat during these months.
  • Eat hot foods and drink warm drinks several times during the day.
  • Ask a family member of neighbor to check on you often.
  • Ask your doctor if any medicine you’re taking increases your risk of hypothermia. Some drugs make it difficult for your body to stay warm. Drugs that may cause a problem include barbiturates, benzodiazepines, chlorpromazine, reserpine, and tricyclic antidepressants.

DPW STORM UPDATE

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February 15, 2015 5:15 PM – Since the snow stopped earlier this afternoon, DPW crews have been able to make progress on all roads. The main roads have been plowed and are having another application of sand/salt material.  We will continue to work on the secondary roads until approximately 7:00 PM.  At that point our crews will have been here for 26 hours, and we will rest them.  All employees and secondary contractors will be back at 5:00 AM tomorrow morning for a 12-hour shift to go through all maps again, deal with drifting that will occur due to high winds overnight, begin to address sidewalks, and address trouble spots/sanding, etc.

 February 15, 2015 2:45 PM – We have entered a phase where there will not be any new snow with this storm, but where winds will remain with gusts into the 30-40 MPH range well into tomorrow.  As a result drifting snow will be an issue throughout the remainder of today and tomorrow until the winds subside.  DPW crews are in the process of finishing plowing work on the main roads, and then will apply salt sand mixture to them.  Secondary crews are now starting to widen the secondary roads out to pre-storm levels, and push back corners.

February 15, 2015 11:15 AM – DPW crews are continuing to plow.  The conditions are difficult, and visibility is minimal.  We have in the past half an hour had vehicles rear-end two of our inspector trucks.  Please stay off the roads if you do not absolutely have to be out.

February 15, 2015 06:45 AM – Good Morning.  The storm has resumed, and all plows (mains and secondary roads) are back on their routes.  The latest forecast calls for between 3 and 8 inches of new snow by noon, with gusty winds topping at 50 MPH.  If you do not have to travel please stay off the roads.

February 15, 2015 02:15 AM – As you have probably seen, we have been in a lull of the storm for the past few hours.  During this time we have been working to get caught up on secondary roads, we finished scraping main roads, and we applied a new round of salt and sand on the main roads.  The forecast is for snow to return in the next hour or two and for this portion of the storm to have the high winds and potential white out conditions.

 

Groundhog Day Storm Update

Feb 2, 2015  3:00 PM – The DPW plowed and treated the main roads this morning. This afternoon we are having the secondary contractor’s plow, now that the rain has softened up what’s on the roads. That effort will be followed with a sanding/salting of both main and secondary roads tonight to address expected icing due to falling temperatures.

Stay safe!snowy-groundhog