Community Corner

First Snow of the Year Puts Road Crews to Work

Monday marked the first accumulating snow fall in Southampton. The town's highway department was at the ready.

The Town of Southampton's fleet of Highway Department trucks had its first test run of the winter on Monday as Mother Nature dropped her first flakes of snow this season.

"Everything went well," said Alexander Gregor, superintendent of highways for the Town of Southampton.  "We completed sanding all the roads by lunch time."

Since there was not much more than an inch of accumulation, Gregor said the town's 430 one-way miles of road only needed to be sanded and salted to prevent black ice from forming. 

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The western part of town, with more accumulation, he said, needed more attention than Eastern Southampton.

However, Gregor said, there was no need to bring out the plows.

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"When you bring them in, storm costs rise. It becomes a big expense," siad Gregor.

According to Gregor, a major storm event can cost the town $35,000 to upwards of $100,000.

Despite its efforts on Monday, Gregor said there were a few minor fender-benders on the town's roads and police coordinated with the highway department to improve roadways where icy conditions became a problem.

"There were some areas where the roads were very slick and the snow compacted and froze, causing black ice," said Gregor.

Gregor could not say how much sand and salt his department used to cover the roads during the first snowfall, but he said the town has some 800 tons available for the winter.

Meteorologist Peter Gonzo, who is with the National Weather Service, said he's not sure if the town will need to use all that salt this year.  However, he pointed out that last year, at this same time, the East End experienced a major blizzard, which coated Southampton in blankets of snow.

According to Genzo, between Dec. 19 and 20, of 2009, some 20 inches of snow dropped in Suffolk County.

"It was a significant snowfall, but I can't say what is to come," said Genzo.

Genzo says since the weather is in a La Nina pattern, it is difficult to predict what this winter holds, even for the upcoming weekend.

"One model tells us that there will be snow and the next comes in and says that there won't be snow," said Genzo.


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