If Winter Comes Early, Highway Department Ready

It's a crystal clear on Friday afternoon in New Canaan. The leaves are bursting with orange and yellow leaves as Halloween approaches. But instead of thinking about trick or treating, a lot of people could be shoveling snow this weekend. The National Weather Service is calling for high-winds and frigid temperatures that could produce up to four inches of snow in the area. If the forecasters are right, the New Canaan Highway Department will be ready.

"We are set for anything that this storm might bring," said Mose Saccary, Superintendent of Operations for the highway department. "Right now, we're making sure the plows are pinned in and the sanders are operational."

The highway department has 13 trucks for 12 sections of New Canaan covering 250 lane miles of road. The town will have nearly 300 tons of sand to start the snow season, which incredibly, may start on Saturday. However, the roads are not the only thing that Saccary is concerned about.

"I'm worried about the trees snapping with all the leaves still on them," sad Saccary. "I'm also worried about power lines. If the snow does come down, I would caution drivers just to take it slow and be safe. We will clean the snow away as quick as we possibly can. We have great crews."

Saccary uses a paid weather service, MxVision Weather Sentry, to get the information needed for potential snowfalls, winds, and frigid temperatures.

"I can just punch in 'New Canaan' and I'll get information from the service to let us know what we can expect. I'll check it at 2pm today, then throughout the rest of the night."

All the trucks are equipped with infrared sensors that measure air temperature and temperature of the roads, which the department uses to determine how much sand is needed on them.

"Snow is a four-letter word to me," Saccary said jokingly. "I don't like it, especially this early. But we are ready and we will take care of it, if it comes."