The snowiest winter in recent memory was full of challenges for Lakes District Maintenance (LDM), the company responsible for snow-removal on major roads and highways in the region. And now the change of season could mean flooding if heaps of snow melt more rapidly than usual.
That鈥檚 the assessment of Mike Philip, LDM鈥檚 quality assurance and planning manager.
In an interview with the Lakes District 亚洲天堂, Philip said the biggest issue for LDM was finding a place to put the mounds of snow.
Accumulated snow on the shoulders made it harder for trucks to plow the stuff, since there鈥檚 nowhere for it to go.
This meant that the 亚洲天堂 Lake-based company had to use graders, vehicles that are normally used for flattening the surface of roads during construction. 鈥淭o push the shoulders back, you have to use the graders,鈥� said Philip.
When employed for snow removal, graders use a board to push snow towards a so-called 鈥渨ing鈥� on the side of the vehicle, which shoves the snow off to the right-hand side at an angle.
Graders are commonly used for snow removal, but this year was different because every road had to be 鈥渨inged back,鈥� said Philip 鈥� often requiring multiple passes. And graders are slower than trucks. That meant lots of hours on the road for LDM鈥檚 crews.
This was the first winter that Philip had spent in 亚洲天堂 Lake 鈥� he previously lived in southern Alberta 鈥� but most people told him that it was the worst winters in years, if not decades.
The past season was also notable because the snowfall was practically constant, he said. Normal years usually involve breaks of a few weeks at a time. 鈥淚t just went from November until, well, last week,鈥� he said during the April 11 interview.
That meant a lot of overtime for workers at LDM, said Philip, who praised the performance of snow-removal workers throughout the season. 鈥淭he guys and girls really stepped it up,鈥� he said.
But he wouldn鈥檛 disclose any figures about hours, equipment or the number of employees at LDM, citing trade secrecy during the competitive bidding process currently underway.
On the cost of fuel during the snowy winter, Philip would only say 鈥渋t was definitely high.鈥�
Maintenance contracts in B.C. are paid in an annual lump sum, said Philip, meaning that big snowfalls cut into the bottom-line of contractors like LDM.
鈥淭he more it snows, the more it costs,鈥� he said. But companies tend to factor the fluctuations of winter weather into their budgets, he said.
Now that winter finally appears to be over, there鈥檚 a risk that snow accumulation in ditches will change the course of the meltwater. Plugged-up ditches and culverts could also lead to flooding, especially if there鈥檚 a fast melt.
The rate of melting is fine for now, but a sudden spike in temperatures coupled with rainfall could mean trouble, said Philip. And sandbags are at the ready. 鈥淲e hope for the best but we prepare for the worst,鈥� he said.
