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DPW officials defend plowing operations during winter storm after criticism from aldermen
DPW officials defend plowing operations during winter storm after criticism from aldermen
MILWAUKEE -- Two Milwaukee aldermen and some residents have taken issue with the city of Milwaukee's Department of Public Works over plowing efforts during and after the winter storm that dumped nine inches of snow in Milwaukee on Monday, December 28th. They say the painful wait for plows is "inexcusable."
Nearly 24 hours after the snow stopped falling, FOX6 News on Tuesday, December 29th found streets in Milwaukee that hadn't been plowed.
DPW officials held a news conference at 2:00 p.m. Tuesday, December 29th to discuss the plowing efforts and respond to the criticism. They said the problem is the wet, heavy snow we saw fall on Monday takes more time to clear.
Some Milwaukee aldermen say that's a weak excuse.
FOX6 News found drivers stuck near 11th and Capitol Tuesday -- a spot where at least 15 vehicles got stuck.
11th and Capitol in Milwaukee
"They just try to make this turn and go up through here and they just can`t do it," Herbert Renfro said. "This salt truck came through, but the salt truck never let their plow down. He came right on through and made a left turn and left."
At Locust and Farwell, a plow had come by, but Max Kittleson was plowed in.
Locust and Farwell in Milwaukee
"The only thing to do is just start shoveling and see what happens," Kittleson said.
And well into the evening rush hour on Tuesday, FOX6 News found drivers getting stuck near 88th and Burleigh.
"This street has not been plowed at all," Jim Holte said. "This is a highly dense residential neighborhood and nobody can get in or out of their properties because of the way the streets are."
88th and Burleigh in Milwaukee
88th and Burleigh in Milwaukee
At least three Milwaukee aldermen were critical of the DPW's response to this storm: Alderman Jim Bohl, Alderman Bob Donovan and Alderman Mark Borkowski.
"This isn`t the drivers` fault. This is the DPW administration that dropped the ball on this and seemingly they look for excuses. This is inexcusable," Bohl said.
Alderman Mark Borkowski
These aldermen say the city hires an additional 80 private plow drivers to help out when the snow falls. The aldermen say they learned the DPW had just a fraction of that for Monday's storm.
"They were to have 80 plow drivers for the event. They only had 18. We were caught with our pants down, ladies and gentlemen, and it is not right," Borkowski said.
Alderman Bohl and Alderman Donovan issued statements on this issue on Tuesday afternoon.
Bohl's statement reads as follows:
Donovan's statement reads as follows:
There is also confusion over when, exactly, the DPW started plowing main streets in Milwaukee.
On Monday, FOX6 News told you that while the DPW had 96 salt trucks out on the roads beginning overnight and into Monday morning, plowing did not begin until 2:00 p.m.
"No plows yet. There are scrapers on the belly of the salt trucks, they might be doing that right now. We have not mounted plow blades at this time," Sandy Rusch Walton, DPW spokeswoman told FOX6 News early Monday afternoon.
This, as Milwaukee County's Highway Division began plowing at 10:00 a.m.
On Tuesday, during the news conference, DPW officials refuted Alderman Bohl and Alderman Donovan's concerns, and said they did not start plowing too late on Monday.
DPW officials said salting started at 6:00 a.m. Monday, with some trucks dropping plows at 9:00 a.m. Other trucks dropped plows between 2:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Monday.
Jeffery Smith with the DPW
"We did have nine inches of snow. It was like plowing concrete," Jeffery Smith with the DPW said. "The sensors (salt trucks) put on a front blade at 9:00 a.m. The garbage packers, when they were completed, and the recycling packers, when they were completed at the end of their work day put on their front blades at that point in time."
During the Tuesday afternoon news conference, DPW officials said all side streets would be plowed by midnight. Earlier Tuesday, a DPW spokeswoman indicated side streets would be plowed by 6:00 p.m.
Unplowed streets in Milwaukee
"We should hopefully be wrapping up around midnight or so, but we will have crews working past midnight into (Wednesday) morning to address side streets as we need to," Smith said.
Meanwhile, Alderman Bohl and Alderman Donovan, who sit on the Public Works Committee say at next week's meeting, DPW officials will be "grilled" about this.
Monitor FOX6 News and FOX6Now.com for updates on this developing story.