BANGOR, Maine — Few Mainers keep a closer watch on the winter weather than Bangor Public Works Director Dana Wardwell.
Each time it snows, he carefully records the total accumulation reported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.
His records this year are striking. Excluding Thursday’s snowfall, a total of 87.8 inches have fallen on Bangor between 20 snowstorms dating back to November.
With six weeks of winter left on the calendar, that’s almost six inches more than the average annual snowfall over the past seven winter seasons.
It’s almost eight inches more than last year’s total for the whole winter, much of it falling in the last two weeks.
“The last two weeks have been pretty difficult,” Wardwell said Thursday. “I think the crew worked a 24-hour and a 32-hour shift last week plus all of the hours in between. Most of the crew worked about 90 hours last week.”
Between fuel, salt, overtime and truck repairs, that adds up to big bucks for the city this year.
“We’re well over a $1 million, so we’re getting there,” Wardwell said. “If it stops now, we’ll be OK.”
In an average year, Wardwell said, the city spends about $1.2 million on snow removal, and it budgets accordingly.
If snowfall is above average, he said, there are reserve funds to cover the extra expense, because “not plowing the streets is not an option.”
“People ask me what kind of winter it’s going to be. I’ll say, ‘I can tell you next April,’” he said. “If you think you can outguess mother nature, you’re sadly mistaken.”
In all, Bangor Public Works operates 42 pieces of snow removal equipment to clear 193 miles of roads, 83 miles of sidewalks, 10 schools and 27 city-owned parking lots, Wardell said.
This year, Public Works has hired a half dozen trucks to help haul snow to a dumpsite in Hampden, where it will remain until it melts.
Wardwell said that’s normal in years with heavy snowfall, but they didn’t do it last year.
Wardwell said residents can assist Public Works by not parking on the street during snowstorms. He also said plow operators can help by not piling snow on sidewalks.
“If we open up a sidewalk and then somebody plugs it, that means a school kid walking to school has got to walk out in the street,” he said.
Keeping sidewalks open is the biggest challenge Public Works faces in the winter time, he said.
Follow Evan Belanger on Twitter at @evanbelanger.