The region is expected to receive between two to four inches of snow.
Frederick, Md (KM) The trucks have been loaded, and the crews are out plowing and treating the roads due to the snow.
State Highway Administration spokesman Charlie Gischlar says personnel were out on Thursday, pre-treating the roads with a mixture of water and salt brine. “It increases the freezing point so that when precipitation first starts, it {the snow} turns into more of a slush than anything else. It’s not able to pack or become any kind of icy situation. So it kind of gives us a leg up on our operations,” he says.
The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for Frederick, Washington and Carroll Counties, as well as northwest, central and southeast Montgomery County, and northwest and southeast Howard County, western and eastern Loudon County, Virginia, and Morgan, Berkeley and Jefferson Counties in West Virginia until 10:00 AM on Friday. The area is expected to receive two to four inches of snow.
Gischlar says crews will be out on the roads on Friday during morning rush hour, which presents its own challenges. “Our crews get stuck in the same traffic as everybody else. So it’s help us when people are off the roadway to get out effectively and efficiently treat the roads,” he says.
SHA says it’s best to stay off the roads Friday morning so SHA, county and municipal crews can clear and treat the roads. But if you have to go out, “take it slow in ice and snow,” says Gischlar.
By Kevin McManus