NORRISTOWN >> Two days after the blizzard, Montgomery County officials were slowly returning to a normal schedule on Monday.
County offices and the courthouse were closed, but senior staff were back to work at One Montgomery Plaza in Norristown to deal with the aftermath of Jonas.
“I drove in this morning. The reports that I’ve got from our roads and bridges crews say that most of the main roads in the county are in pretty decent shape,” said Frank Custer, director of communications for the county. “There are still some side roads that need attention, but mostly I think people are getting around pretty well.”
As of Monday afternoon, the county had spent $85,700 on snow removal, including labor, salt and contractors to help with the plowing efforts. Approximately 300 tons of salt were used throughout the storm by the county.
PennDOT spokesman Charles Metzger said the department had started with 120 tons of salt before the storm, but they haven’t calculated yet how much was used over the course of the storm. The work isn’t over for PennDOT, either, as crews will remain vigilant salting roads as snow melts and refreezes throughout the week.
“It’s going to happen every day this week. Temperatures hit above freezing, then in the high teens, low 20s during the nights,” Metzger said. “The sun will provide some melting, and overnight crews will address any icing issues. The rule of thumb is if it looks wet, it is most likely black ice.”
Metzger said that the light, dry snow was helpful during the removal, but also allowed for wind gusts to create snow drifts five to six feet tall in some areas, which required special equipment to remove. Special equipment was also brought in to remove snow from construction zones, like those on routes 422 and 202.
“For the most part, we can push it off to the side,” Metzger said, but explained that barriers along construction areas leave nowhere to push two feet of snow.
A nighttime closure of Route 422 this week at the Route 100 interchange has been cancelled due to the snow and PennDOT is working on rescheduling the placement of concrete beams for the bridge.
Elsewhere in Montgomery County, Custer said that roads and bridges crews were still on the clock, cleaning up snow, and re-cleaning in many areas. So far, only Elmwood Park Zoo in Norristown has reported damage. The roof of the Birds of Paradise exhibit collapsed after Saturday’s storm.
Public works crews were able to prepare county offices and clear the stairs and sidewalks around the Montgomery County Courthouse for a Monday opening, but officials determined that road conditions in Norristown were not safe enough to ask employees to commute.
Custer said the county offices were quiet on Monday.
“I’m getting a lot of work done,” he said.
The storm also served as a trial for new Commissioner Joe Gale, who has only been in office a few weeks.
“It’s something else, because it’s the first snow storm where I dealt with governing,” Gale said. “It was actually a busy weekend for me, with pretty much constantly getting updates and briefings.”
Gale said that research and briefings leading up to the storm helped him prepare for the test of governing in a blizzard. He learned about the county trucks, how they are equipped with GPS, how to deal with power outages and road closures.
He also learned how to use the county’s emergency radio system, on which the commissioners have their own line in case power outages make it difficult to communicate via phone.
Throughout the storm, he also saw firsthand the kind of efforts it takes to restore the county after a major winter storm.
“I was really proud of all the county staff. They’ve done a great job, and have been keeping us updated on how it was going,” Gale said.
While many around Montgomery County were still snowed in at home or snowed out of work, Custer said he was confident that Tuesday would see much of county operations returning to full force. Though the Code Blue declaration was extended through 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Custer said he anticipated county offices and the courthouse, parks and trails would be open again Tuesday.
He said crews would continue working “until the job is done.”
“Guys went home last night to get some much-needed rest, after they had been out there for a long, long time, and everybody is working today,” Custer said. “Hopefully today we have everything under control.”
