Jeff Bunn

PIERRE — With fall in full force recently, can winter be far behind? For city planners and a local service organization, that realization has arrived, which means it’s now time to prepare.

As city officials have met with staff and sent letters to local groups in the city, the Capital Area United Way is asking certain residents to request free snow removal service.

Advertisement

Though no snow is forecast in Pierre for the next six to 10 days, according to the National Weather Service out of Aberdeen, Glenn Neilsen, a meteorologist, said Watertown received snow Wednesday and added snow historically has arrived in Pierre sooner than October.

“Generally, this time of year you could get it,” he said.

Last year, Pierre received 24 inches of snow. The earliest snowfall has been recorded was two-tenths of an inch Sept. 25,1934, according to Neilsen. 

For Catherine Collins-Adler, executive director of Capital Area United Way, now is the time to get elderly people or people with disabilities living in Pierre or Fort Pierre on a fixed income with no one to clear snow for them registered for the Scoop It service.

The service, which has women’s prison inmates remove snow from sidewalks and home entrances, was used by 30 households last year, but only five have pre-registered this year, said Collins-Adler.  

She said having a list prepared for inmates when measurable snow, typically two inches, falls makes the process more efficient.

“We will accept sign ups anytime,” Collins-Adler said. “Inevitably, throughout the season (people in need of the service) will call to get on the list. But we’d like them to sign up beforehand, so when the first snow hits — and I hope it will be a ways off — we will have a list to get to the inmates to go and take care of it.”

This is the second year of pre-registration for Scoop It and the fourth year the service has been offered, said Collins-Adler.

She added recipients have been pleased with the aid but cautioned to let inmates do their work.

“I hear they are in and out pretty quickly,” Collins-Adler said. “When you’re all working on a sidewalk at a house or driveway, it should go pretty fast. I’ve heard from seniors that they were just very happy and grateful for the service. They would ask to take hot chocolate to them and I had to say, ‘no you can’t.’”

Inmates will not typically clear entire driveways of snow only enough to allow vehicles to get in and out but Collins-Adler said exceptions are made.

Those who would like to request service should call 605-224-9229.

Residents should expect brochures advertising emergency snow routes — used when two inches of snow are registered — to arrive in the mail with utility bills soon, according to Lynn Patton, construction and operations manager for the city.

Law enforcement, schools, St. Mary’s Healthcare Center and state officials will meet with city officials Tuesday about what to do when snowfall is particularly heavy, said Patton.

Aside from adding liquid magnesium chloride to sand-salt mixtures this year to combat increasing cost and decreasing availability of the substance, snow removal operations will be much the same as last year, said Patton.  In the 2009 budget, operations were allotted $53,825,  less than in years past. But Patton said operations will go on to meet whatever conditions there may be. 

“It’s like all emergency services,” he said. “It’s got to be funded. You just put your dollar amount there and hope that you’ve got enough when spring comes and the warm weather sets in.”

The record amount of snow fall set in October for Pierre was 7 inches on Oct. 7, 1943.