Local road crews hope this round of bitter temperatures and potential snow through the weekend is the last of the winter. The last few months have weighed on the salt supply in multiple counties.
Franklin County Commissioner Tom Linkel said the highway department was down to about 40 tons of salt Tuesday morning.
“By the time we mix [with sand], we got enough salt to cover all of our routes about three times,” Linkel explained.
Fortunately, additional salt supply arrived at the Franklin County Highway Department later that day, giving the county over 200 tons. The supply should cover the county through spring.
There is about 250 tons of salt for Ripley County roads, according to Steve Schonegg at the Ripley County Highway Garage. The goal is to avoid having to purchase anymore.
“It’s a premium price for salt and we chose not to cut in to next year’s budget,” Schonegg indicated. “Their asking for around $200 a ton right now and its just way out of the ballpark for us.”
The highway department will be conservative by mixing salt at a one-sixth ratio with cinders to cut down on the use of salt.
In Decatur County, there is roughly 60 to 70 tons of salt remaining. Mark Mohr, superintendent of the Decatur County Highway Department said crews will monitor the weather the next month.
“It all depends if the weather turns good we’re going to have that left for next year. If the weather turns bad, we’ll find some more and get some more,” Mohr said.
The extended forecast suggests snow is likely through the weekend with temperatures in the twenties and teens. A chance of rain and snow is possible on Saturday.
