Photography by Matt Marcinkowski
- If I could, I would stay home like the news tells you, but I can’t—I have to come to work. When I tell people what I do, they just sort of look at me, like, “Wow.” I like the physical, hands-on aspect.
- During emergency snow events, our crews work in two 12-hour shifts: 7 a.m.–7 p.m. and 7 p.m.–7 a.m. We go in, get our assignments, and form into our groups. We plow Highway 40, with one truck against the wall, another in lane two, and another in lane three. It’s a constant job, staying alert in traffic and [being aware of] other objects, especially when plowing snow. We also lay down beet juice—it helps melt the snow and ice.
- One of the worst snowstorms would have been in early 2014—the Weather Service nicknamed it “Snowmageddon”: 12 to 18 inches of snow with high winds and snowdrifts.
- A surprise ice storm in 2017 crippled our fleet. Every roadway was bumper to bumper, and our trucks were in the middle of traffic. We had highway escorts help us through.
- The most challenging part is that tractor-trailers are very impatient—it’s scary. They come up and honk their horns and point at you, and you shake your head. I’m afraid they’re going to crash, and sometimes I’ll see them in a ditch a mile and a half ahead.
- We have signs that say, “Stay back 100 feet,” but a lot of people don’t abide by that. There’s a lot of honking—drivers get mad at us.
