A late-February blizzard caused a nearly complete shutdown of Westchester County and stretched schools’ winter breaks into a second week.
But thanks to a combination of preventative action, around-the-clock city workers, and an assist from Mother Nature, Rye was able to quickly dig out of the 15 inches of snow that fell over a 24-hour span.
A countywide state of emergency and ban on road traffic from the morning of Sunday, Feb. 22, until 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 23, kept cars off the road, allowing Rye’s Department of Public Works to efficiently curb the accumulated snow.
“They did what they always do: they performed exceptionally,” City Manager Brian Shea said of the DPW. “Even before the first snow fell, they’d started working to continuously maintain emergency exits and prepare to clear the streets. This past week was really a testament to their skills and professionalism.”
Many DPW workers came to work at 6 a.m. Sunday, then alternated eight-hour shifts, taking four-hour breaks in between to eat and sleep on cots set up at the Rye Recreation Center.
“We’re very fortunate they opened it up,” one DPW worker said of Rye Rec. “And I’ll shout out the McGuire family (Kelly’s Sea Level owners Jerry, Martha, and Kelly McGuire) for providing food for us in a pinch. Monday morning, nothing was open. They made breakfast sandwiches for 50 guys. It gives us a sense of community that I really enjoy.”
Not all DPW workers live in town, and access to Rye Rec allowed them to get rest and stay nearby, without traversing the many county roadways that had not yet been plowed.
“I’ve worked across the state, including in Albany, and I’d put this crew up against any,” said Shea, the former chief of city operations in New York’s capital. “It’s telling when you see our roads versus some neighboring jurisdictions.”
The timing was also on the workers’ side. Because the snow began falling on a Sunday, residents were already home from school and work. The ban on road usage was announced several hours before the first snowflake arrived.
“The City of Rye has been preparing for the storm for a number of days,” Public Safety Commissioner Michael Kopy said on Feb. 23. “We really appreciate all of the Rye residents staying at home so we can clear the roads. We believe our streets are in better shape than our neighboring communities.”
Rye schools, which were closed the previous week for winter break, remained closed an extra two days before returning to a delayed opening on Wednesday, Feb. 24. City buildings and programming were closed for a day, Bee-Line buses were idle, and nearly all flights in and out of Westchester County Airport were canceled. Scheduled meetings, like the Rye City Council meeting and the Rye City School District board meeting, were delayed until the first week of March.
The storm did not cause much damage. Only two trees were taken down by DPW workers — one private and one on city property — and both were already dead, located on Manursing Avenue, between Midland and Forest avenues. One was especially hazardous, overhanging both a road and an electrical transformer.
“One of the things people might not appreciate is they’re trying to keep roads clear for the duration of the event, but that’s just the start of it,” Shea said. “Snow removal doesn’t end in certain parts of the city for days. In the business district and certain lots, there’s nowhere to push the snow. So, for DPW, Part 2 is physically hauling the snow to a snow dump. It’s a multi-day event for them and they put in various hours to get it done.”
Despite several weeks of persistent snowstorms this winter, capped by Westchester’s largest blizzard in years, the DPW said it still has plenty of salt left in its reserves for any snow that trickles in during March.
“We’re over the hump as far as weather goes, because the sun’s higher in the sky, and the days were a little longer, and it melts away,” said a worker who has been with the DPW for 25 years. “Once you open up to blacktop, the snow just disappears. So, I call it ‘ego snow.’ It makes us look like a bunch of heroes. Yes, we have to use salt, but once it gets going, and the sun’s high in the sky, it melts quickly.”
