The Ohio Department of Transportation announced plans Wednesday to buy 210,000 tons of salt for local governments use as the area braces for the possibility of more snow this weekend.
Snow totals have exceeded average accumulations for the season, according to the National Weather Service. The Dayton region has had more than 40 inches this winter. Typically, snow accumulations average 14 inches for the entire season.
Those numbers have left Dayton and other local governments scrambling for solutions to clear roads as salt supplies dwindle and suppliers have difficulty fulfilling shipments.
But it's unclear whether the additional salt ODOT is purchasing will make a difference in communities awaiting back orders.
It will be a matter of timing, said Montgomery County Engineer Paul Gruner. IIf the county receives the salt it has on back order -- about 10,000 tons -- it probably won't need additional salt, he said.
ODOT had 627,000 tons of salt on hand in October, according to Steve Faulkner, an ODOT spokesman. Since then, the agency has ordered and used most of the additional 500,000 tons it ordered. Wednesday, ODOT sent a bid to salt suppliers.
"It's the frequency of events that has made this winter difficult. It hopefully will help provide salt where there might be none," Faulkner said. "This is absolutely a safety issue…safe roads are safe families. They can't get back and forth safely if we don't do this. We want to make sure no matter where they are, there are safe driving conditions."
Gruner said Montgomery County used about 250 tons of salt during this week's storm and has about 900 tons left in its inventory.
Dayton Public Works Director Fred Stovall said road crews plowed and salted the primary roads and highways Tuesday night before switching over to a plow only operation late Wednesday morning for neighborhoods and residential streets.
"We just don't have the salt and inventory," Stovall said.The city used about 800 to 900 tons on Tuesday's storm and has approximately 1,100 tons of salt on hand now, Stovall said.
Wednesday's ice and snow storm shut down hundreds of schools, churches, businesses, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
Icy conditions could linger as temperatures are expected to drop to the low- to mid-teens on Thursday and Friday, News Center 7 Meteorologist McCall Vrydaghs said. More snow could be on the way this weekend, she said, but only a few inches are expected.
Freezing rain in the region totaled about one-tenth to one-fourth of an inch of ice, Vrydaghs said.
Most of Ohio had 4 to 8 inches of snow. Area totals ranged from 4.7 inches at Dayton International Airport, to 5.5 inches in Xenia, to 4.5 inches in Beavercreek and 4 inches in Kettering and Vandalia.
Caryn Golden contributed to this report.
