MEMA Snow Removal Operation Supports Bedford’s DPW

By Julie McCay Turner

Thanks to Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency’s Level 2 (Partial Activation) Winter Storm Response & Recovery Operations, a concerted snow-removal effort came to Crosby Drive this morning.

Although the Bedford DPW had opened the road after the most recent snowfall, the task of returning the road to its full width fell to the equipment and personnel from the Maine National Guard.

According to MEMA guidelines, “Requests for assistance clearing snow are prioritized utilizing a number of factors, including the amount of snowfall in the community on February 14-15, 2015, and total snowfall over the past three weeks.”  Since the January 2015 Blizzard, MEMA has responded to more than 515 resource requests in nearly 150 communities.

In Bedford this morning, military police officers directed vehicular traffic and supervised heavy equipment. MEMA’s Situational Awareness Statement #34 stated that one backhoe, one front-end loader, four 10-ton dump trucks, a large backhoe and three ‘skids’ or bobcats were dispatched for the Bedford project.

The ‘bobcats’ and front end loaders moved snow from the edges of Crosby Drive and delivered it to waiting dump trucks. The snow was then moved to Bedford’s very own ‘snow farm,’ located at the edge of the large Middlesex Community College parking lot adjacent to the Bedford VA on Springs Road.

Bedford’s MEMA staging areas remain open, both on Hartwell Road at the edge of Hanscom Field and at Middlesex Community College; the Red Cross is providing canteen services.