New pieces of equipment and new salt storage facilities factor in Erie County's preparations for the coming winter. Officials are also urging the public to take steps to be ready by downloading an app that offers real-time information and a means for families to put their own emergency plan together.
County Executive Mark Poloncarz led a news conference Friday at one of the three new salt storage sites, on Harlem Road near Clinton Road. He was joined by representatives of the county's Public Works and Emergency Service departments.
Poloncarz announced that the county has purchased 10 new plow trucks, joining 25 dump trucks the county has added to the Highway Department's fleet since 2012. The county, he said, is also acquiring three new snowblower attachments for high-lift vehicles.
"We do this because we need to prepare for winter. Winter is here, folks," Poloncarz said. "All we've got to do is feel the cold air and realize even though on the calendar winter doesn't officially begin until December, winter is here. Snow is expected this weekend and we are prepared in Erie County to deal with that snow."
The county executive also used the occasion to encourage the downloading on an app, ReadyErie, that officials say provides updated information as well as an option for families to form an emergency plan and communicate with each other.
"We've been working to fine-tune it with the Highway Department so you will so you will be able to see real-time maps of what roads are closed, what roads are open, where we are as far as states of emergency in the towns and villages we are working with," said Erie County Emergency Services Commissioner Dan Neaverth, Jr.
Taking advantage of the app is just one of many steps Poloncarz said citizens may take to prepare for the winter months. He also recommended that, when a winter storm is in the forecast, a household makes sure it has enough food supply and, when applicable, prescription drugs for a week. He also encouraged car owners to make sure that the tires are in good condition.
"One accident can shut down the Thruway," he said. "One accident can shut down the 400 or 219. One accident can shut down Route 5 and, as we know, when those routes are shut down, traffic can come to a standstill for the whole region. So we ask the public to be responsible and ensure that your tires on your vehicle are appropriate for the snow."
Erie County Legislator Patrick Burke added that senior citizens are an especially vulnerable population in winter storms.
"If you have seniors in your neighborhood, your communities, be sure you exchange phone numbers with them," Burke said. "Be sure to check in on them to ensure they have the proper medication and if you can be of assistance to them, be sure to do so."
Poloncarz noted that Friday's news conference came one day shy of the third anniversary of one of Western New York's most notorious storms. In November 2014, a storm dumped seven feet of snow in parts of South Buffalo and suburbs south and east of the city. Poloncarz named it Winter Storm Knife, though it's more commonly referred to as "Snowvember."
"One of the reasons we were able to get through it as good as we did, and it was a very difficult storm to get through it as well as we did, was because of the tremendous staff that stand behind me that worked in the Department of Public Works and Emergency Services for literally ten days in a row."
