M.L. city crews start snow removal earlier than usual
Meadow Lake city crews are busy clearing the streets after a weekend-long snowfall which saw more than 30 cm fall along with an additional few centimetres of rain.
The weather’s events over the weekend caused an issue for crews as they tried to clear the streets. Early on Saturday, Oct. 15, crews were out clearing the first priority streets but Sunday, Oct. 16 brought another heavy snowfall, causing them to start over.
“We clear so the fire department and ambulance has access to their buildings and then we do main roads, other healthcare facilities, things like the lodge, Centre St., Fifth Ave. and schools. Then the final priority being residential areas,” city manager Diana Burton said. “Our responsibility is to keep certain areas clear for things like emergency vehicles and sometimes that means we have to go back and start over before we get through everything.”
City council budgets roughly $40 to $80,000 per year for snow removal. Burton added, regardless of how much snow there is in a year, staff work full-time. If the city doesn’t spend the full amount on snow clearing, it’s used for maintenance, cleaning and other general duties.