Jan 16, 2018 4 min read

Persistent snowfalls and temperatures that frequently hover in the single digits have been a shock to many in the Pittsburgh region after several winters marked by light snow and mild temperatures.

Road crews have been out on a daily basis putting down salt and ice-melting chemicals and plowing. But officials said supplies of road-clearing salt are holding up so far.

Washington Councilman Ken Westcott, who oversees the public works department, said the city’s store is “down pretty low.” The city placed an order for another 180 tons from its supplier Tuesday morning.

City road crews have used about 800 tons so far this year – an amount Westcott said isn’t extraordinary but has already outstripped what the city used during the warm temperatures that dominated the 2016-17 winter.

“For a season, that’s probably a good number – 800 to 1,000 ton,” Westcott said. “It’s a lot more than we used last year at this point.”

Although this is mid-January and the North Strabane Township road crew tends to an estimated 70 miles of roadways, public works director Tom Lovell said Tuesday the township’s salt supply is “actually in really good shape. We haven’t had much of an issue getting salt.”

He said the municipality orders 3,000 tons of salt per year and has it delivered on an “as-needed” basis – his department calls the supplier, which transports it in either a 300-, 400- or 500-pound increment. Lovell estimated North Strabane has used a little more than one-third of those 3,000 pounds.

He called this an “average” winter thus far. “We’ve had cold snaps with intermittent snow.”

Although Chartiers Township officials just placed an order to replenish its salt supply, thanks to a salt storage facility built in 2016, there has been no shortage, said Jodi Noble, township manager.

“Thanks to that, we always have salt on hand,” Noble said. “We order our salt in the summer during the off-season. “

“That’s the beauty of having the salt storage facility,” she added. “We always have salt on hand and we are not put in a pinch as in past years.”

The storage facility, which holds 2,000 tons of salt, was built at a cost of $50,875. Noble said the township typically uses 1,500 to 1,800 tons of salt each winter.

“The last two years were mild so the township spent less on materials and overtime,” Noble said. “This year has certainly been more active.”

Township road crews are responsible for clearing more than 56 miles of township roads as well as 22 miles of state-owned roads.

Lee Hendricks, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service in Pittsburgh, said monthly readings for snowfall this year have been greater than normal, but “we’re not going to go near any records” at this point.

“We’ve had worse winters,” Hendricks said.

The season’s also had its share of sudden shifts in weather patterns.

Snow that had been on the ground early last week melted before heavy rain hit the area early Friday, causing flooding throughout the region. When temperatures dropped, the rain soon froze and then turned into about six inches of snow by the following morning.

The state Department of Transportation said the stocks of salt it uses for maintenance in the region are holding steady.

“Our salt and anti-skid supplies are OK,” said Valerie Petersen, spokeswoman for PennDOT District 12, which includes Washington County. “As for comparing this year to other years, every winter is different so it’s hard to compare apples with apples, but we can say that we’re keeping pace with our typical usage for this time of year.”

Waynesburg Borough Manager Mike Simms said the borough has not been experiencing any problems during this snowy period.

“We’ve been fine. Every time I’ve called, they’ve been prompt in supplying it,” Simms said of the contracted salt supplier.

He alluded to a shortage that affected many communities a couple years ago, but Waynesburg weathered that storm just fine.

“We didn’t have any problems then because we looked ahead and had a supply ready,” Simms said.

Just outside Waynesburg in Franklin Township, Supervisor Corbly Orndorff said the township started the winter with a “full bin” that has given it a cushion to avoid a shortage. The township has refilled its stockpile once, and Orndorff expects to be able to easily order more after this most recent winter storm blows through.

“We expect to place another order when this patch goes past,” Orndorff said. “Then we’ll be ready for another batch.”

Regional editor Mike Jones and staff writers Rick Shrum and Kathie Warco contributed to this report.