As meteorologists forecast sleet and temperatures of -13 degrees Celsius for next week, the municipal services say they are ready to cope with snowfalls and ice. In case of continuous whiteouts, snow removal works are performed non-stop. Priority is given to the main arteries where public transport runs, to roads of access to suburban settlements, to health facilities. For such measures, 4,500 tonnes of antiskid mixture and 2,300 tonnes of technical salt were stored at the beginning of the season.
Organization of snow removal works
The head of the General Housing and Amenities Division Ion Burdiumov said that snow clearing, ice prevention and removal works are carried out day and night, depending on necessities, so as to maintain passable the sidewalks, exits to pedestrian crossings, public transport stations, roads and sidewalks in yards of apartment buildings. The works include manual cleaning of snow and ice, mechanical cleaning of snow with machines equipped with blades and brushes, dealing with ice and glazed frost by spreading antiskid material.
In yards of apartment buildings, the heads of municipal housing stock managing and dwellers’ associations ensure manual cleaning of snow and ice. Works are performed at entrances to block stairs, on sidewalks inside yards, at household waste platforms and rooms. Priority is given to access routes to social institutions, including hospitals, educational institutions. Depending on precipitation, employees sometimes work round the clock to ensure smooth pedestrian movement. About 400 workers are involved in manual snow removal works during snowfalls.
Sergiu Tomiță, manager of the municipal cleanup enterprise “Exdrupo”, said that the company was prepared to maintain road infrastructure during the winter season. A few days before the snow fell, the special vehicles and pieces of equipment were re-equipped for snow removal works as these are multifunctional and execute various road infrastructure maintenance works throughout the year. In case of forecasts with negative temperatures, preparations are also made and, when it snows, 24/24 shifts are organized and works are performed according to predetermined itineraries. The intervention time for spreading antiskid material is about three hours, depending on the intensity of traffic, while for cleaning the roadway is about five hours.
Multifunctional machines
The head of the General Housing and Amenities Division Ion Burdiumov, said that all the vehicles are equipped with multifunctional equipment throughout the year, except for snow removal equipment with blades and brushes, which is used when necessary. The equipment life cycle is seven years. In 2019-2021, there were purchased a number of of sanitation and snow removal equipment, such as tractors, trailers, brushes, blades, salt spreaders, vans, mechanized sanitation equipment, mini loaders. In 2022, tractors and salt spreaders were also bought. From among the old vehicles, there are four dump trucks dating from the 1980s which are still functional.
The municipal enterprise “Exdrupo” has 58 special vehicles and units of equipment that can be involved in snow removal works and spreading of antiskid material. About 60% of special vehicles and pieces of equipment are old, but they are in a satisfactory functional condition. In the auto transport sector, there are 39 functional units, self-spreaders, self-sprayers, rotors. In the mechanization sector, there are a total of 19 units, including tractors, front loader. Sergiu Tomiță reiterated that the company has special vehicles dating from the 1970s and 1980s and keeps them functional. “They work, they break down often and we fix them. Until we have new vehicles, we have no other way out of the situation,” added the manager of the enterprise.
During heavy snowfalls, snow removal requests from citizens come through the Dispatcher’s Office of the municipal enterprise “Exdrupo”, which operates 24/24. All the requests are deal with promptly if they are within the remit of the company In case of problematic situations, citizens can also call the Central Municipal Dispatcher’s Office on (022) 22-22-67 or (022) 22-26-04.
Meteorologists said that a southern cyclone will bring snowfalls and low temperatures to Moldova the coming days. These can test municipal enterprises and services’ capacities to cope with the tasks mentioned above.
Milena Macarciuc, IPN
