sanitation
(New York, NY/77WABC)-New York City’s Department of Sanitation has issued a ‘Snow Alert’ for today, Thursday, February 18th. It went into effect at 5 a.m. ahead of Winter Storm Viola which has caused power outages and deaths from the South to the Atlantic Coast.
NYC’s roadway dining and open streets program is suspended today; sidewalk dining may continue. Additionally, restaurants should remove or secure furniture, and remove electric heaters. Remove the tops of structures if possible or regularly clear snow off of structures to prevent damage. The City will notify restaurants when they may reopen roadway seating for outdoor dining.
Restaurant owners may find additional information to prepare their spaces for snow at https://www1.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/pedestrians/openrestaurants.shtml.
Alternate Side Parking is Suspended today Thurs. Feb. 18th, tomorrow,
and Sat.; The city says meters will be in effect.
Based on current forecasts, the Department expects snowfall beginning this morning and continuing into Friday. The National Weather Service forecast calls for accumulations of 4 to 9 inches. All winter weather information and information about the City’s response to the storm can be found by visiting the City’s Severe Weather website at www.nyc.gov/severeweather or by calling 311.
Salt spreaders and brine trucks started pretreating some roadways ahead of the snowfall on Wednesday night. Additionally, the Department’s collection trucks have again been turned into snowplows, ready to plow once two inches of snow has fallen.
The Department has more than 2,000 total vehicles equipped with plows, including salt spreaders.
Trash and Recycling collection is temporarily suspended. Residents may put their trash and recycling out at the curb following their normal schedule, however the sanitation department says snow operations take priority and collection delays are to be expected.
New Yorkers are also encouraged to sign up for Notify NYC, the City’s free emergency notification system. Through Notify NYC, New Yorkers can sign up to receive phone calls, text messages, and email alerts about severe weather events and emergencies. To sign up for Notify NYC, call 311, visit www.nyc.gov or follow @NotifyNYC on Twitter.
Find information on Sanitation snow operations along with residents’ responsibilities during and after snow at nyc.gov/snow.
