Date: Fri 15-Mar-1996

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

weather-spring-highway-road

Full Text:

with cut: Is Spring Finally Here?; Forecasters Say `Maybe Not'

B Y K AAREN V ALENTA

Spring may begin officially next Wednesday but local weathermen say there's

bound to be more snow before winter truly ends.

"There probably will be one more storm that we have to shovel or plow - we're

only in mid-March and this is New England," said Bill Jacquemin, meteorologist

at the Techni-Weather Center of Danbury, an official station for the National

Weather Service.

Winter's 12th storm, for those who are counting, dropped eight inches of snow

in the Danbury area last Friday, boosting the total snowfall to 106 inches, an

all-time high. The previous record of just over 80 inches was set in the

winter of 1945-48.

"I don't think we will ever see another winter like this in our lifetime," Mr

Jacquemin said.

Last year the Danbury area received just 18.7 inches of snow.

Mr Jacquemin said that if it does snow again, as he predicts, the snow won't

stay on the ground long.

"The sun is getting stronger and warming up the ground so whatever falls is

likely to melt quickly," he said. "In fact, I didn't bother to shovel after

last Friday's storm."

Snowfall records have only been kept officially in the Danbury area since the

1930s, but they date back to the late 1800s in some other towns. Greg

Cantwell, another meteorologist at Techni-Weather, said 115 inches were

recorded in Waterbury in the winter of 1915-16 so it's likely that was a bad

year in the Danbury area, too.

Long-term weather predictions are difficult, Mr Jacquemin said, but this

winter, like two years ago, had significant snowfall after hot, dry summers.

"Nature has a way of balancing things out," he said.

The record snowfall has had a major impact on town budgets. Clearing the roads

is a particular headache for Newtown, which - at 60 square miles - is the

third largest town in the state. There are more than 600 miles of roads in

Newtown, a total that keeps growing as new housing developments are built each

year.

Town officials budgeted $230,000 this year for such winter maintenance costs

as salt, sand and overtime. So far they've spent $366,245 and the season isn't

over yet. The budget shortage will be covered by $100,000 from contingency

funds and $85,000 in state aid.

At Tuesday night's Legislative Council budget workshop, Councilman Pierre

Rochman complained about the amount of sand that has accumulated on the roads

because of the repeated sanding and salting by highway crews. Mr Rochman

pointed out that the town has to pay to remove the sand each spring. He asked

whether the town could cut back on the amount of sanding that it does during

storms.

But Public Works Director Fred Hurley and First Selectman Bob Cascella said

their offices are innundated during snowstorms by phone calls from residents

who believe the roads should be plowed more quickly.

"As soon as it stopped snowing and the sun came out at 2:15 pm last Friday the

calls started," Mr Hurley. "People got cabin fever and wanted to go out. The

calls were unbelievable."

Mr Hurley said several members of the highway crew absent that day but all the

major pieces of road-clearing equipment still were in operation. He said the

highway department worked a 16-hour day, finishing the cleanup about 10 pm.

Several council members said Newtown is known for consistently doing an

excellent job at clearing its roads during storms.

"Newtown's roads always are significantly better than those of surrounding

communities," Mr Mahoney said.

Town officials agreed, however, that the condition of many roads has

deteriorated over the winter because of the freezing, thawing and heaving of

the ground. Councilman Jack Rosenthal asked specifically about the status of

the 19 roads targeted for roadwork in the current budget.

"I drove all those roads today, except for Washington Avenue, and they all

have to be repaired this spring," Mr Rosenthal said. "They are in terrible

shape. "

Mr Hurley said many of the roads were torn up for the installation of the

town's new sewer system. They will be paved as part of the sewer contract, he

said.

"Most of the money the town spent (on these roads) this year was on new

drainage," Mr Hurley said. "The road surface is the responsibility of the

contractor. We've been after the contractor to fill the potholes until the

resurfacing can be done this spring."