Last week, the city experienced some localized flooding after heavy rainfall and hours later, we had a light snowfall. Before the big storms arrive, it is important the city and our residents to be prepared for winter weather such as windstorms, snow, ice, and freezing temperatures.
During a snow or ice event residents can help by moving vehicles from city streets until snow removal is complete, locating alternate parking if you live on a steep hill, staying off roads until conditions improve, allowing plenty of time to get to your destination, and leaving plenty of room between vehicles. When you encounter trucks engaged in snow or ice removal, yield the right of way if you can do so safely, keep back at least 50 feet, and do not attempt to pass.
The city’s Public Works crews prepare roads by deicing and securing materials to aid snow removal and sanding. The city’s fleet includes trucks equipped with snowplows and sand/salt spreaders and a truck equipped with a dedicated liquid deicer applicator.
Snow removal and deicing routes are prioritized according to volume and speed of traffic, terrain, transit routes, routes to schools and routes utilized by emergency services. (See map of priority snow removal routes.) During and immediately following a storm, crews will concentrate on the established primary and secondary routes. Once these prioritized routes have been cleared, crews will begin plowing third tier routes to serve residential neighborhoods.
The city will post information to its Facebook (City of Mountlake Terrace Government) and Twitter (CityofMLT) pages and sends news releases to local media to notify the public of situations that have occurred in the area. News releases are also posted on the homepage at www.cityofmlt.com.
Snow and wind may lead to power outages. With so many homes heated by electricity in this area, that is something important to prepare for. Please equip your emergency kit with food, water, flashlight, matches, and blankets to last for several days. Also make sure cell phones are charged before the storm and consider purchasing a portable charger with those holiday gift cards.
The South Snohomish County Emergency Cold Weather Shelter is located in Lynnwood. You can learn more about it by visiting www.WeAllBelong.org or call 2-1-1 for assistance. To report power outages or fallen power lines, please call Snohomish PUD at (425) 783-1001.
For more emergency preparedness information, please visit www.cityofmlt.com/183.
###