Fulton County Highway Department works through low visibility and long hours to keep streets clear

FULTON COUNTY, Ind. - After a weekend snowstorm dumped more than four inches on snow on Fulton County, the county highway department said it was "all hands on deck" to keep the roads clear, safe and drivable. The department said it had 13 drivers available to help with snowplowing. The department superintendent said that made for a "long day" on Sunday.

"One thing I think people need to keep in mind is that a guy's route could take all day, half the day to get one direction and then half to get the other half of the road," Leslie Bruner, who works at the Fulton County Highway Department said.

Bruner said the biggest challenge plow truck drivers face when clearing the roads was visibility.

"Not only do they have the snow on the ground that they're moving off the road, but also, they have what's drifting from the fields that they have to take care of," Bruner said. "A lot of times, their windshields could be completely covered with snow, blowing snow that they may not be able to see what they're tackling head-on."

Fulton County Highway Department Superintendent John Geier agreed.

"They're coming down the road, they might not be able to see very well," Geier said. "That snow comes back on their windshield. They can't see. They might be backing up at an intersection or something and might not realize that there's a car behind them."

Geier said because of that poor visibility, it's important for other drivers on the road to keep a good distance between them and a snowplow to minimize the risk of accidents.

Geier said even after plowing the roads Sunday from about four in the morning to around eight at night, there was still work to do Monday morning to make sure people can go to work and schools can open.

"We'll have every road opened up before we do go home tonight (Sunday). We'll be back at it, probably at about 5:00 tomorrow (Monday) morning, widening the roads out, cleaning out the intersections."

Geier said as of Sunday afternoon, no accidents involving a Fulton County Highway Department Snowplow had been reported.