[Durham INC] City of Durham Prepares for Winter Weather Forecast

[Blalock, Amy]

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

 

 

News Release

 

For Details, Contact:

Amy Blalock

Sr. Public Affairs Specialist

(919) 560-4123 x 11253

(919) 475-7735 (cell)

Amy.Blalock at durhamnc.gov

 

For Immediate Release:  January 28, 2010

 

City of Durham Preparing for Weekend Winter Weather Forecast

Motorists Urged to Use Extreme Caution While Driving

 

DURHAM, N.C. - With winter weather predicted to begin late tomorrow
afternoon and last until Saturday evening, the City of Durham is busy
preparing to keep city streets operating smoothly.

 

The Street Maintenance Division of the City's Department of Public Works
has crews on stand-by, ready to use seven salt-and-sand trucks to
specifically target icy "hot spots" as needed.  In addition, the
department is outfitting 30 trucks with plows and salt-and-sand
spreaders to be ready by tomorrow to spring into action as soon as any
frozen precipitation begins to fall. 

 

To further prepare for tomorrow night's forecast, City employees began
yesterday with distributing a salt-brine solution on high-traffic
bridges and overpasses throughout the city limits as well as in the
downtown area.  Salt-brine solution is a salt and water mix that is
sprayed onto the roadway surfaces before snow and ice begins to fall,
helping to prevent accumulation from bonding to the road surface.  

 

"We began yesterday with pre-treating certain high-traffic roads
throughout the city and will continue to distribute the salt-brine
solution today," said Michael Balzarano, superintendent of the Street
Maintenance Division of the City's Department of Public Works.  "We hope
that the combination of the salt-brine solution and salt-and-sand trucks
we will have ready to roll will keep our roadways passable."

 

The City's plan of action for clearing or reducing hazards on city
streets is prioritized in the following order:

*         Bridges and overpasses throughout the city.

*         Major arterial streets within the city.

*         Streets to essential health facilities, police and fire
stations and critical community facilities.

*         Routes to two City fuel sites.

*         Streets within the central business district.

*         Clear access to Durham Public Schools.

*         All residential areas with priority initially to passage of
emergency vehicles and then to all traffic.

 

Durham residents are reminded to be careful of downed power lines and to
report them to Duke Energy at 1-800-POWERON (1-800-769-3766) or in
Spanish at 1-866-4APAGON (1-866-427-2466).

 

To report downed trees on city streets, residents should contact the
Durham Emergency Communications Center Non-Emergency Line at (919)
560-4600 unless the downed tree presents an immediate, life-threatening
hazard; then motorists should call 911. 

 

Residents and property owners are responsible for snow and ice removal
in their driveways, apartment access roads, parking lots and sidewalks.
The clearing of private streets is the responsibility of the homeowners
within that subdivision.  In order to facilitate snow and ice removal on
city streets, residents can help by adhering to the following tips:

*         Stay off the roads if at all possible.  If you must drive, be
sure you have good all-weather tires or chains.

*         If at all possible, park your car off the street or highway to
let salt-and-sand spreaders pass with ease.

*         If your problem is a life-or-death emergency, call 911.

 

Finally, the Durham Police Department advises motorists to treat
intersections with malfunctioning traffic lights as four-way stops and
proceed with caution.

 

For additional information on other City services, facilities, or
programs that may be affected by the predicted winter weather, contact
Durham One Call at (919) 560-1200, visit the City's Web site at 
www.durhamnc.gov, or tune into DTV8 either on Time Warner Cable channel
8 or online at www.durhamnc.gov/dtv8 <http://www.durhamnc.gov/dtv8/> . 

 

###

 

News Media:  For interview opportunities or b-roll/still shot
opportunities of City of Durham salt-brine trucks preparing roadways
today, contact the Office of Public Affairs BEFORE 2 p.m. to make
arrangements. 

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