View from a Plow--Minnesota Snowstorm 12-11-10 (updated with Baby's delivery involves plows)

[Omaha Steve]

Run time: 02:22 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUUEFTV-ay8   Posted on YouTube: December 13, 2010 By YouTube Member: rfilipczak Views on YouTube: 1072   Posted on DU: December 16, 2010 By DU Member: Omaha Steve Views on DU: 1172

 

Omaha had a plow driver killed on duty 6 years ago on Valentines Day.

On edit. From Nebraska. Baby's delivery involves plows: http://www.omaha.com/article/20101213/NEWS01/712139844

http://www.afscmeblog.org/2010/12/15/for-those-about-to-plow-we-salute-you/?__utma=1.1847225545.1261531521.1276731138.1289957884.87&__utmb=1.1.10.1292463085&__utmc=1&__utmx=-&__utmz=1.1283951865.86.5.utmcsr=search|utmccn=%28organic%29|utmcmd=organic|utmctr=people%20pac&__utmv=-&__utmk=151338553


December 15th, 2010

When winter weather hits, it’s public employees who help our communities dig out and get back on the road. This past weekend, when almost 20 inches of snow were dumped on Minnesota, snow plow drivers from AFSCME Council 5 worked tirelessly to keep the roads open.

Via the Minnesota AFL-CIO comes this footage from the blizzard posted by Mn/DOT:

Those drivers will be back on the roads today as another storm dumps even more snow on the area. Here’s a timely reminder from John Van Hecke at Minnesota 2020 of just how much we count on public service workers to keep our communities moving:

A foot and a half of snow is a lot of snow. When you’re driving around today, remember to thank your state, county and local government snow plow drivers. They made your mobility possible despite the fifth largest snowfall in Minnesota’s recorded meteorological history.

Despite steady, predictable conservative policy rants declaring that government is failing, city, county and state snowplow drivers achieved an impossible level of street clearing in a remarkably short of amount of time. Government did this, acting on our collective directive to maintain safe, free-flowing and commercially vital transportation infrastructure. As a consequence, emergency calls were answered, people traveled safely to and from work, and Minnesota quickly returned to the business of Minnesota prosperity.

All of this happened because publicly-employed snow plow drivers did their jobs under very difficult circumstances.

Coping with blizzards is an intrinsic Minnesota experience. We all have roles, whether it’s shoveling out and moving cars ahead of street plowing, assisting neighbors or just being supportive of a storm’s imposing demands. We may marvel at the challenges flowing from 18 inches of newly-dumped snow but we’re not surprised. Prospering in Minnesota requires planning for winter.

We are freer — not less free as conservatives would have us believe — precisely because we empower ourselves through government to quickly open snow-closed roads.

So, thanks again public works and transportation department employees for getting the job done. Without you, we’d still be gridlocked just as the next storm, projected for Wednesday, hits. Instead, we’re moving around and getting on with our lives. And, really, that’s why we have government.

[MineralMan]

1. Thanks for posting that.

It took me about 8 hours of steady work, over three days, to finally clear my driveway, my neighbor's driveway, and three houses worth of sidewalks after this blizzard. I was outside when the snowplows finally came down my street. I applauded them visibly, then spent another hour and a half clearing the mounds of snow at the end of my driveway and my neighbor's driveway.

I think that many of the St. Paul plow drivers worked without hardly any breaks for 36 hours. My hat's off to them, and I don't mind a damn bit paying their wages and all the overtime.

Thanks, folks!

[BrklynLiberal]

2. Whew..not a job many of us would be able or willing to do.

kudos

[lumpy]

6. People like these who work in the public interest are the real

heros. What would we do without them?

[BrklynLiberal]

7. +1000. You got that right!!!

[Auggie]

3. Great video... K&R

[SheilaT]

4. We moved to Minneapolis at the beginning

of January, 1982.

On January 20 that year, a snowstorm dumped 17.4 inches of snow on the city, which was at that time, an all-time record. Which was very surprising to us, as we'd always assumed Minneapolis surely got major snow storms all the time. Well, everyone took a deep breath and dug out. Three days later, on January 23, 1982, another storm dumped exactly 20 inches on the city. (here's my source: http://climate.umn.edu/doc/journal/top_thirteen_snowfalls.htm)

Since this was Minneapolis in January, large piles of snow stayed for weeks. Indeed, the two combined storms broke all records (and I expect those records still stand) for total snow in the city, most snow in a single season, stuff like that.

Eleven months later, December 27, 1982, it started snowing again, and eventually 16.5 inches came down. The next morning, the 28th, blizzard conditions existed in the city. I'd just come home the evening before, in the thickly falling snow, from the hospital where I'd given birth to my first child a few days earlier. Ahh, memories. That third storm completed record-setting for snowfall in a single year.

[BrklynLiberal]

8. Let me know where you are going to move next. I want to avoid that place.LOLOLOL

[SheilaT]

9. Since Minnesota I've

lived in Phoenix, Boulder CO, Overland Park KS, and now Santa Fe, NM.

When I first moved here to Santa Fe about two and a half years ago, the weather gods were clearly looking for me as several tornadoes were reported in this state a month or so after I got here. Also, some hurricane swept inward through Texas and reached the southwest corner of the state. Since then, either the weather gods decided they can't find me, or they no longer care, as we haven't had any weather that's unusual for here since then.

[BrklynLiberal]

10. Good. so the hex has been lifted.. LOLOLOL

[AsahinaKimi]

5. Aaaaaaaaah!

Reminds me of when I lived in Upstate NY. They used to knock down all the Mailboxes..(lol!) Sure glad I came home to California.