WINTHROP, Mass. — The sidewalks in Winthrop are still clogged with snow after a major nor’easter, and now residents are being ordered to clear them, or face a fine.
Residents told Boston 25 News that they saw historic flooding during the storm. Paul Turner said he has lived in the area for 40 years and has never seen flooding on the harbor side of the peninsula.
But he said last Thursday that more than a foot of water pushed its way onto Shirley Street and left a big mess behind, with all of the water turning to ice as temperature plunged.
MORE: Winthrop residents still dealing with nor'easter's icy clean-up
But Turner said the town handed out warnings Sunday telling residents to clear their sidewalks within a day, or be fined.
The fine for first time offenses is $25.
Many people said that’s a tough deadline.
"It sounded kind of stupid to me, within 24 hours, we still got ice, we still got people trapped in," said Turner.
But Turner and his family aren't alone -- most sidewalks in Winthrop are frozen solid under at least two feet of ice.
"I just brought out a 10-pound sledgehammer with a point on the back of it and I was out there for about twenty minutes, half hour just hitting it and it’s not doing nothing," Turner said.
Turner and his family did his best they could, clearing their walkway and part of their sidewalk, but he says it's almost impossible to finish this under these extreme conditions and is hoping the town will give them an exception.
"A couple of warm days and we'd be great, you'd be able to shovel it," Turner said.