WOOD COUNTY (WAOW) -
The first significant snowstorm of the winter is upon us.
Snowplow drivers say the type of snow the storm brought made
driving conditions even more dangerous.
"Out on the road, you're going to think it's a light, fluffy
snow because it's blowing and drifting in areas, but it actually packs to the asphalt
and the concrete real well," said snowplow driver Carl Werner.
"It makes the roads a lot slipperier once it gets packed on.
It's almost like a layer of ice, basically," said snowplow driver Joachim
Mangen.
Snowplow drivers were up early this morning to start
clearing off the roads as people headed off to work.
"We started at 4:00 this morning," said Mangen.
It took them hours to clear the streets, but the snow
continued to fall.
The wind added a dangerous factor.
"It's really hard to remove all the ice and snow when you
have wind because it'll stick to the road," said Werner.
Plow drivers say people should use extra caution if they
need to be on the road.
"I've already seen a couple vehicles in the ditch today, or people
having a hard time stopping at intersections even with the salt and scraping we've
been doing," said Mangen.
"Right before I came in here, I almost got hit by a car. He
slid through and intersection," said Werner.
That's why plow drivers say they work long hours – to keep
the roads safe.
"We'll go ‘til 8:00 to 10:00 tonight," said Mangen.
They're taking in caffeine and getting some exercise to stay
alert.
"Drink a lot of energy drinks. Get out and do some jumping
jacks," said Mangen.
The snowplow drivers say they'll be back at it early Friday
morning.
Even with the snowplow drivers working long hours, officials
are urging people to stay off the roads.
