WESTERN NEW YORK (WKBW) — Some of Buffalo's largest suburbs are dealing with staffing shortages when it comes to snow plow operators, which can only compound the problem facing so many municipalities this weekend.
This is the perfect storm because of things like the holiday, COVID-19 and just not enough drivers.
"The Town is taking this very seriously," Town of Hamburg supervisor, Randy Hoak said.
As Western New York's holiday blizzard inches closer, Town of Hamburg, West Seneca and Amherst town leaders are working to secure the roads.
However, the challenging factor for Hamburg is getting staff to come in during their off hours.
The Town has created an incentive to pay double for those working the storm on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Drivers who are required to have a Commercial Driver's License (CDL) to operate machinery would get an extra $3 an hour.
"This could be a very lucrative opportunity for many of our town employees but the town is very concerned and this is a matter of public safety. We believe this is a worth while investment," Hoak said.
The Town has the equipment but it just needs drivers to step up to the overtime slot.
"There were some points last weekend where we were only to get four drivers to plow the streets of Hamburg. That's not going to cut it this weekend. That's why we're offering the extra incentive," Hoak explained.
Additionally, the Town of Hamburg is opening its Senior and Community Center throughout the weekend as a warming and shelter station.
In West Seneca, drivers are all in and ready to take whatever the weather will throw at them.
Town of West Seneca supervisor, Gary Dickson said, "Everyone is a professional and that this is really why they're around and they understand that the town depends on them."
Town supervisor, Gary Dickson, said machines are gassed up and ready to salt the roads.
Dickson added, "If it's snowing 3 inches an hour then it's hard to keep the roads clear. You have to wait until that passes. If it's snowing about an inch and hour, if it's not blowing too hard, all these things come into account. We do have an excellent team and they are well-practiced."
Crews in the Town of Amherst is hitting the roads Friday.
The problem is, Old Man Winter will hit Western New York at such an inopportune time, as some parts will be hit with rain amid crews salting the roads.
"The problem with that is there's a lot of rain that's going to wash the salt off and it's not going to do any good anyways. It's going to be a timing thing that we're going to have to watch very closely to see where the temperature is going," Town of Amherst Highway Superintendent, Patrick Lucey said.
Hoping to provide some relief to the roads, some employees have canceled their vacations.
"I do have a small rash of COVID cases I'm dealing with, which is inevitable. We're not at 100% but we're in pretty good shape going into the storm," Lucey said. "Usually, if we have 3-4 inches, we send the plow trucks out. This is a normal snowfall where we're not talking 60 to 70 mile an hour winds. Certainly, that's going to really reduce visibility. Because of that reason, I'm not going to put trucks out there in zero visibility, with the chance that they could be involved in an accident."