Crime & Safety
Hasbrouck Heights Prepares for Blizzard
Heights public schools will have a half-day on Friday due to the blizzard warning which predicts more than 12 inches of snow accumulation for the area.
UPDATE - 12:30 a.m. Hasbrouck Heights public schools will have a single-session day on Friday due to the impending storm, according to the district's website.
The borough's DPW and emergency management are preparing for what may be the first big blizzard of the year.
The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for the area starting early Friday morning. The weather service reports snow accumulation of 10 to 14 inches is possible along with wind gusts up to 45 mph.
Find out what's happening in Hasbrouck Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The heaviest snow is expected to hit Friday evening into Saturday morning, forecasters said. Visibility of one quarter mile or less is possible at times.
In Hasbrouck Heights, storm preparations began Wednesday and Thursday, according to Mike Kronyak, borough administrator.
Find out what's happening in Hasbrouck Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The DPW has its fleet of plowing equipment set and ready to go, the salt shed is fully stocked and crews started to pretreat some of the roadways with a brine solution made of water and salt. This is done about 24 to 48 hours before a storm is expected to hit on roadways such as hills or major intersections, explained Kronyak.
The plowing fleet consists of 8 dump trucks with salt spreaders, 2 front-end loader trucks with plows which are used to plow hills and three mason dump trucks with plows for cul-de-sacs and dead end roads, according to Kronyak.
The weather service warned of the potential for treacherous driving conditions and localized power outages brought on by the winter storm.
Public Service Electric and Gas said it was preparing for storm, including readying "all available personnel" and arranging for contractors and tree crews to help.
"Snow, by itself, does not pose a serious problem for utilities, but heavy snow, icing and strong winds can increase the possibility of downed wires and associated power outages. Cars striking utility poles can also cause wires to come down. And cold weather can affect the number of calls we receive from customers with insufficient or no heat," PSE&G said in a statement.
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