Snow Storm Fern Blankets Rockland

Rockland was enveloped in a blanket of snow this past weekend, leaving grocery stores raided, roads icy, and an abundance of snowmen in its wake. The RCT reached out to departments around Rockland to give our readers the inside scoop as to how the County of Rockland handles intense weather events such as these. 

Office of Fire and Emergency Services

OFES reported that they continually monitored the storm from the beginning of last week until the morning of January 26th. They stated that they spoke to several nonprofits and the Red Cross regarding their plans.

The OCFES Staff reported in on each township to see if there were any issues requiring immediate attention during the height of the storm.

Orange & Rockland had minimal outages during the height of the storm.

From 06:00 Sunday until midnight of January 26th, there were:

3 Plow truck fires

1 car fire

1 structure fire in Upper Nyack with 2 firefighter injuries

3 gas leak/odors

3 electrical-outside wires

1 chimney fire

13 automatic fire alarms

1 Carbon monoxide alarm

1 odor of smoke in a residence

County Highway Department

The Rockland County Highway stated that they send out 24 snowplow trucks as well as four additional small plow trucks to handle intersections and problem areas.  Most of the Rockland County Highway roads are main roads, however they stated that the roads with the most volume or those that have large commercial areas were prioritized. Smaller roads such as the park roads as well as secondary roads in mostly residential areas receive the same amount of attention until such time as a natural occurrence such as a blizzard, hurricane or tornado might require the Highway Department to concentrate their resources on our main roads.

The County confirmed that each storm is addressed uniquely and individually. For most snowstorms, this protocol is followed: there is anti-icing with salt brine prior to any anticipated snow fall, then salting the roads once the snow begins to fall. Plowing begins once there is 2” on the ground. The County also applies magnesium chloride by prewetting the salt, should temperatures drop below 20 degrees. The County remains in plowing mode until the storm is over as this reduces salt usage. Once the snow has stopped and the roads have been plowed, the County re-salts to prevent the roadway from icing up.

Clarkstown Highway and Police Dept. 

Supervisor George Hoehmann reported that there was a house fire in Clarkstown that began in a basement on Broadway and Upper Nyack. The fire began overnight and was an electrical fire stemming from a snowblower. Hoehmann stated that the fire was quickly taken care of, as well as several small water main breaks that occurred as a result of the intense storm. 

The Clarkstown Highway Dept.  reported that they have 1,400 streets, over 300 miles of roads and 45 miles of sidewalks, 12 Commuter Lots and 70 Bus Shelters that they manage. They use around 1,100 tons of salt during storms.

All 56 Plow Routes were staffed, with it taking about four hours to complete a route. Employees came in at 5:30am on Sunday morning and worked until 2:30pm on Monday which resulted in a total of 33 hours with a 4 hour break between 11pm-3am from Sunday into Monday. 

Monday-Tuesday the team was pushing back edges of roads that are narrow due to the amount of snow and responding to ice conditions. They continue to work on clearing the 12 commuter lots, 70 Bus Shelters and 45 miles of sidewalks. Due to the amount of snow, snow removal may take a while and will most likely take the rest of the week and then some to complete. 

The team returned at midnight on January 27th to clear and remove (truck away) the snow on Main Street, New City from Congers Rd to Third St. The morning of the 28th, the team will continue with sidewalks, bus shelters, Line of Sight issues and complaints as they come in.

The Clarkstown Police Department reported a 34% increase in total call volume week over week, reporting 616 calls from 1/25 to 1/26, compared to 457 calls from 1/18 to 1/19. 

Stony Point

Stony Point reported they had 10 trucks out covering 10 Routes, with each route taking three to four hours to complete

The town stated they answered 45 calls for service, 19 snow related, and one MV accident. This was about 10% lower than usual.

In addition to the Highway Department, the Town of Stony Point uses the Buildings and Parks Department to plow and maintain all Town properties, including the Police Station.

Town of Ramapo Police Dept. 

The Town of Ramapo Police Department reported handling 230 calls for service, including 63 snow-related parking complaints, along with motor vehicle crashes, fires, and medical emergencies. After midnight on January 26th, the department handled approximately 70 additional calls. While overall call volume was about 15% lower than normal, storm conditions required longer response times and additional resources, and the department had extra officers on duty overnight to keep the town safe.

We thank the public for their cooperation and extend our greatest appreciation to the heroes of Rockland who go above and beyond to keep us safe. To the police, fire, EMS, highway departments, DPW, and parks personnel, we thank you for your dedication the best county in New York!