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Show Volume XXV Issue XXIII The Ogden Valley news Page 11 January 15, 2020 Keeping Fire Hydrants Accessible UDOT Snow Removal Frequently Asked An extremely important, but Recent snowstorms, combined with the Questions: Why do plows drive so slow? often overlooked, safety issue is effects of roads and parking lots after being snow-covered fire hydrants. Fire plowed, have left many fire hydrants partially or hydrants are owned and maintained by various water companies; however, everyone is responsible to help maintain good access to them. Each resident may not always have a hydrant on their property, but any hydrant in the vicinity of a home could be used as a water supply in the event of a fire. Fire hydrant locations—especially for older hydrants—are oftentimes hundreds of feet away from any residence. Regardless of a hydrant’s location, Weber Fire encourages all residents to know the location of the closest hydrant and help to make sure it is always accessible. The protection of your home may How To“Dig-Out” A Hydrant depend upon it. - Minimum of 3 feet to and Weber around the fire hydrant. Fire has an informal program called “Adopt-a-Hydrant” in which residents take responsibility of a hydrant(s) and help maintain its fire-ready accessibility. We recommend that residents and neighborhoods team up and adopt their neighborhood hydrant(s) to make sure they are all accessible. This needs to be done after each storm, or as often as needed. Generally it takes about five to ten minutes to correctly shovel the snow out from around a fire hydrant. However, in case of a fire, those minutes could mean the difference between losing an entire home and, conversely, containing the fire. When firefighters respond to a fire alarm, it is done with a limited number of people and so everyone’s function is vital in the first few minutes of a fire. The longer it takes to tap into a water supply, the longer it is before firefighters can do other vital functions required when fighting a fire. Speed is dependent upon weather and road conditions, so for safety reasons, plows drive at cautious speeds. Speed is also important for effective snow removal. When plows are throwing snow off to the side of the road, it is necessary to drive at slower speeds to place the snow where it needs to go. Motorists should slow down and travel about a football field’s length behind snowplows to increase safety for all drivers. Following a snowplow too closely often results in broken windshields or damaged paint caused by salt or abrasives being distributed on highways. Drivers should use extreme caution when passing a snowplow and never pass on the right side or on the shoulder. Snowplows are equipped with wing plows, which can extend several feet off either side and trailers that will swing out several feet to either side. Motorists should never pass a snowplow’s cloud, which is the snow thrown when in operation. Why hasn’t my road been plowed? UDOT is responsible for plowing all state-owned roadways. Typically, this includes interstates, highways and high-volume roads. Roads that are owned and maintained by cities and counties are the responsibility of that municipality. If you’re curious where the plows are, you can see the location of UDOT owned plows on the UDOT Traffic website and app. Is there something that can be done to stop snowplows from filling my driveway with snow? Unfortunately, there isn’t. As snow is removed from the road it is pushed to the side of the road— including driveway accesses and sidewalks. It then becomes the responsibility of the property owner to remove the snow from these areas. Please note that property owners should not push or pile the snow back onto the roadway since it can cause hazardous conditions for motorists. A UDOT snowplow damaged my car. What do I do? Snowplow drivers are careful and courteous, and use extreme caution as they work to keep roadways clear; however, in some cases crashes do happen. For crashes, call 9-1-1. For claims, contact 801-965-4000. Also, keep in hydrants and access water quickly, saving criti- mind in some areas, overnight parking is prohibcal time when an emergency does arise. ited during winter months for safety reasons and Please consider helping a neighbor with a to allow for thorough snow removal. medical condition or who is elderly by shoveling out a hydrant in front of their home. Remember, quick access to fire hydrants ben- FIRE HYDRANTS cont. from page 3 efits everyone. The “Adopt-a-Hydrant” program at Weber be cleared out each time it snows. Although fireFire is an informal, volunteer program; there- fighters do their best to shovel many hydrants, it impossible for us to clear each one out after fore, it is not necessary to advise the fire depart- is every snowfall. ment in regards to which fire hydrants you will Please take a couple of minutes to uncover be clearing. any fire hydrants within the vicinity of your Weber Fire has created hydrant marker home after each snowfall. Clear a path approxipoles that are attached to the caps of fire mately three feet around the circumference of hydrants and extend up about four feet. They each hydrant. Then shovel a path from the street are painted orange for better visibility, which or roadway up to the fire hydrant. helps to locate hydrants during times of deep By keeping fire hydrants clear of snow, snow. If a hydrant does not have a bright orange the public can help firefighters easily locate pole marker, please contact Captain Kevin hydrants and access water quickly, saving critiSheridan at 801-745-2315 or <ksheridan@ cal time when an emergency does arise. Please consider helping a neighbor with a weberfiredistrict.utah.gov> completely buried by snow. It is important to realize that snowplow drivers are not provided with any specific instructions with regards to plowing snow near hydrants. Their number-one concern is removing snow from streets to make them safe for travel. However, the snow they remove from the roads oftentimes ends up burying fire hydrants; thus, the need to be ever diligent in keeping them accessible remains one of our top concerns; we hope it is of concern to you, too. Fire hydrants need a three-foot clearance outside the connection point. They also need to be cleared to the bottom of the hydrant. This is to assure firefighters can make a quick connection to the water that the hydrant provides. There are hundreds of hydrants that need to be cleared out each time it snows. Although firefighters do their best to shovel many hydrants, it is impossible for us to clear each one out after every snowfall. Please take a couple of minutes to uncover any fire hydrants within the vicinity of your home after each snowfall. Clear a path approximately three feet around the circumference of each hydrant. Then, shovel a path from the street or roadway up to the fire hydrant. By keeping fire hydrants clear of snow, the public can help firefighters easily locate Three Nights This Year reserved seatiNg How many people does UDOT employ to plow? UDOT’s snow team includes 481 full-time plow drivers. There are also 80 construction staff and seasonal employees with commercial driver’s licenses who can operate snowplows as well. The fleet consists of 508 snowplow trucks, 11 self-propelled snowblowers, and 13 TowPlows statewide. What is UDOT putting on the roads? In addition to plowing, UDOT employs other tactics to keep roadways clear and safe. Approximately 1.8 million gallons of salt brine are used each year to pre-treat for ice on state roads. During storms, UDOT uses 236,000 tons of salt including regular white salt and three types of high-performance salt. In addition, 24,000 tons of de-slicking grit and volcanic cinders are used throughout Utah, excluding Weber, Davis and Salt Lake counties. In some locations with higher ice concerns, UDOT uses spray systems on the road or bridge to apply potassium acetate to prevent ice. ‘How does temperature affect snow plowing? Temperature greatly affects the removal of snow and the buildup of ice on the road. The colder the temperature, the more salt it takes to melt the ice and snow to allow it to be cleared. How much money is spent on snow plowing? UDOT’s winter operations budget is about $24 million per winter season, including equipment, salaries, sand, salt, brine and dynamite for avalanche control. Winter operations costs an average of $1 million per storm. What types of technology is used to forecast storms? UDOT uses several innovative tools to forecast storms, including road weather forecast teams, video cameras near remote mountain passes, laser beams and GPS technology. These technologies help UDOT monitor conditions, respond in a timely manner and efficiently clear snow and de-ice roads. How many snow storms are there in Utah each year? On average, Utah experiences more than 25 winter storms annually. UDOT crews in different locations around the state see different conditions, for example, the crews at Logan Summit clear snow nearly 40 percent of the year, while the St. George crew clear snow only a few times a year. For more information, visit <udot.utah.gov> medical condition or who is elderly by shoveling out a hydrant in front of their home. Remember, quick access to fire hydrants benefits everyone. The “Adopt-a-Hydrant” program at Weber Fire is an informal, volunteer program; therefore, it is not necessary to advise the fire department in regards to which fire hydrants you will be clearing. The local water departments have created hydrant marker poles that are attached to the fire hydrants and extend up about four feet. If a hydrant does not have a pole marker, please contact Captain Kevin Sheridan at 801-7452315 or email him at <ksheridan@weberfd. com> Presented by Snowbasin Sports Education Foundation (SSEF) snowbasinskiteam.org Sponsored in part by Roosters Brewing Company www.roostersbrewingco.com Showings February 14, 2020 7 p.m. February 15, 2020 7 p.m. February 16, 2020 7 p.m. at Peery’s Egyptian Theater 2415 Washington Blvd. Ogden Tickets available now New Films each Night! at Box Office: 801-689-8700 Smith’sTix 800-888-8499 $20.00 Each $50 for All Three Days peerysegyptiantheater.com www.SmithTIX.com |