QUINCY, Mass. — New England is bracing for a big snowstorm this weekend. It’s the first major winter storm in a while. Boston 25 Meteorologists are tracking significant snowfall in some areas across the state, including an expected foot and a half over in Quincy.
Mayor Koch and the head of DPW Al Grazioso say they’ve been gearing up for this storm for the last several days.
Crews plan to be out before the first flakes fall, during the storm and even adjusting schedules based on accumulation and road conditions.
The city says they’ve struggled to hire enough plow truck drivers, which could force some crews to work longer shifts and cover larger routes, but enough preparation is in place to keep everyone on the roads and at home safe.
“I know I’ve talked to other mayors at state level that it’s getting harder and harder to get private contractors, we don’t get enough snow for them to stay in the business, so that’s a challenge but we’re in a good place I believe we have about 170 pieces ready to go,” said Mayor Koch.
“Our basic concern is the duration because your drivers are out there 24 hours, 36 hours, they get tired, so trying to keep people fresh and then the aftermath. Again we want to make sure we get the schools open, and we want people to be safe,” said Grazioso.
Residents can help during the storm as well. Moving cars off the street, avoiding travel and giving plow trucks plenty of space on the roads are key, especially if there’s an emergency.
“We want to be able to get fire trucks and an ambulance down those streets, so we just encourage people you know we have a population here in Quincy that there’s a lot of rentals, they move in they move out. They don’t know the rules so we want to make sure they’re reminded that cars have to be off the streets,” said Koch.
If you can check on a neighbor, do so safely. If you do not need to go outside, stay indoors.
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