2nd Photo: Light equipment operator Lonnie Johnson loads salt into the small truck driven by laborer 4 Donnie Wright (in black sweatshirt).
(For more photos and video, see the City's Facebook page, @covingtonkygov)
Public Works’ battle to keep streets clear enters 2nd day
COVINGTON, Ky. – There’s a cot in Brad Schwenke’s tiny office attached to Public Works’ garage.
About 3 a.m. this morning, after 16 hours spent battling a winter storm as the City’s “Snow Commander,” he turned out his lights and tried to catch a few hours of sleep.
But then about 7 a.m., he was back at it, ready to start another 16-hour shift.
Schwenke wasn’t alone. Far from it.
More than half of the 22 members of the Snow & Ice Team’s “A” team (so-called because it’s the first team to report in) chose to sleep at the garage in-between 16-hour shifts, rather than make their way home and lose precious sleep time.
Amid the sound of motors, tools, and doors, they laid down wherever they could find room – in corners, tiny offices, conference rooms – to get what rest they could.
“A little bit (of sleep) is better than nothing,” mechanic Daniel Chumley said.
Such is the battle to keep City streets and roads clear in a snow and ice storm that is stretching into its second day, and such is the dedication and persistence of Covington’s Public Works crews.
The “A” team reported in at 11 a.m. Sunday and worked until 3 a.m. Monday, putting 20 trucks on the road, a mechanic in the shop, and a backhoe driver in the salt dome to load salt. When the “B” or second team reported in at midnight, led by backup “commander” Jason Roberts, there was a three-hour overlap during which Public Works had 37 trucks on the road.
“Every single truck we had with a plow was out, and then some just had salt,” said Schwenke, who is supervisor of the Parks & Facilities Division.
While crews made a lot of headway overnight, several hours of heavy snow late this morning set them behind again, he said.
Schwenke wasn’t surprised. He said he had warned newer employees to be prepared for the long haul.
“The first 16 hours are easy, I told them,” he said. “But now there’s more traffic out, people are getting tired, and the temperature is going to drop, and that’s going to work against us.”
Meanwhile, a Level 2 snow emergency continued to be in effect throughout Kenton County. According to that declaration, “only motorists whose travel is necessary should be on the roadways.”
That declaration was also in effect in Covington, where City officials continued to ask residents for patience. With most of the attention being paid to well-traveled thoroughfares and primary streets, some side streets have yet to receive much attention, despite the all-hands-on-deck attack. But with the worst of the storm having moved through the area as of early this afternoon, crews will soon be able to spend more time on side streets.
To assist in that effort, residents are also being asked to put their cars in driveways where possible and residents and businesses are asked not to blow and shovel snow into the street.
THAT COULD HAVE BEEN BAD: The most harrowing story of the night? When after midnight a plow truck driver reported seeing a Ford Explorer (with a woman inside) stuck sideways on top of the railroad tracks just south of the underpass in the Latonia/Rosedale neighborhood. Schwenke said the Explorer apparently leaving Rosedale Green during the heavy snowfall had crossed Glenn Avenue and driven into the ditch and up onto the tracks. He said that he, the plow driver, and three Covington police officers were able to spin the car so it could be driven down the tracks to the crossing, where they propped up a railroad tie to enable its front tires to drive over the rail.
FEELING PRESENTABLE: One Public Works employee, about cleaning up in a sink at the garage between shifts: “I’ve got chunks of salt in my hair I didn’t even know about.”
DWINDLING SUPPLY: Public Works’ salt dome held roughly 1,700 tons of road salt at the beginning of the storm. As of about noon, according to light equipment operator Lonnie Johnson’s best estimate, a little less than half was left. But 500 tons is on order.
EASY DOES IT: How deft must drivers be in maneuvering plows? “You have to hold your breath, mirrors tucked in, with barely a couple of inches on either side,” said one crew member about going down a particularly narrow street.
A WELL-OILED MACHINE: Drivers weren’t the only ones facing continuous challenges. Mechanics said they worked furiously to replace broken lights on plows and fix plow edges, hydraulic lines, flat tires, jammed salt spinners, and other pieces and parts of pickups and dump trucks in an effort to keep them on the streets.
NEITHER RAIN NOR SNOW: One driver said he was asked whether – when the falling snow got really bad and the streets treacherous – whether crews hunkered down at the garage to wait it out. “Not in the 10 years I’ve been here,” he replied. When it’s bad, he said, “that’s when we shine.”
A HELPING HAND: “You’ve got a ‘situation,’?” Schwenke said into his radio after getting seemingly a 100th call. But as “situations” go, it was minor and quickly handled. A small plow truck, forced by parked cars to take a corner too sharply, was stuck on ice at the corner of 16th & Oakland. Roberts, the Devou Park & Forestry Supervisor who takes over as “Snow Commander” next week, rushed to the scene, attached a chain, and yanked the driver off the curb onto better traction.
THUMP THUMP: A ride in a plow truck is to experience a cacophony of thumps, bangs, and rumbling, as the plow’s edge catches on manhole covers, potholes, and the metal plates that cover ongoing utility work beneath the streets’ surface. “So many plates,” Roberts said. “I bet we had to re-set 15 plates last night.”
FUEL FOR THE BODY: One way to counter the boredom of a long shift on the road? Eating. “I feel like I actually gain weight during snowstorms,” one driver said. What do they eat? Doughnuts, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches from home, takeout from breakfast and fast-food places, chips, and whatever else can be carried in. Schwenke, for example, brought in a crockpot of chili his wife made and a tub of cookies that his daughter made. He shared, of course.
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