BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Winter has not exactly walloped the Lehigh Valley, but a pattern with little reprieve from unseasonable cold and nuisance snow has created its own perfect storm.
Some salt sheds across the region could be down to their final grains, officials said Thursday, as reports of a rock salt shortage spread through the region and well beyond.
“Yes, there is a shortage and we are having issues replenishing our rock salt supply,” Bethlehem’s Public Works Director Michael Alkhal said.
"We are certainly not comfortable with our current supply and are currently pursuing more with limited success so far."Bethlehem Public Works Director Michael Alkhal
The city has enough salt on hand to treat a few more storms, Alkhal said, but it could spell trouble if recent predictions of six more weeks of winter ring true.
“We are certainly not comfortable with our current supply and are currently pursuing more with limited success so far,” he said, emphasizing that “getting through February is critical.”
That’s bad news with another round of winter weather expected Saturday, and a storm signal for the middle of next week that doesn't guarantee snow, but has the attention of forecasters.
The pattern has been the problem
We haven’t seen a winter this cold in more than a decade, EPAWA meteorologist Bobby Martrich said Thursday morning.
It was in 2013-14, Martrich said. "Oddly enough, it was one of this year’s analogs,” he said.
Analogs are looked at when meteorologists assemble long-term forecasts, examining current atmospheric conditions and looking for previous years with similar conditions.
“That year was more brutal than this winter and a lot snowier," he said. "It was below average November through April that year. Actually beyond.”
The Lehigh Valley has been locked in a pattern of below average temperatures through the entirety of the winter season thus far.
December ended at 2.5 degrees below average, and January nearly doubled that. It finished at an average monthly temperature of 25.2 degrees, or 4.9 degrees below normal.
The pattern has carried into February, along with five of the first 12 days seeing some form of wintry precipitation.
‘OK with salt supplies,’ but…
“PennDOT is OK with salt supplies,” state Transportation Department spokesman Ron Young said Thursday morning.
Young was speaking specifically for District 5, which covers six counties, including Lehigh and Northampton.
“District 5 has used approximately 49,000 tons of salt so far this winter and heading into this week had over 68,000 tons of salt on hand,” Young said.
That’s more than the district used all of last winter, when it dropped 45,484 tons of salt on area roadways. But there’s also enough left — for now — to treat numerous winter storms.
“District 5 has used approximately 49,000 tons of salt so far this winter and heading into this week had over 68,000 tons of salt on hand."PennDOT spokesman Ron Young
“PennDOT uses multiple salt suppliers based in several states,” Young said, noting that PennDOT has the ability to share salt on a case-by-case basis.
“If a municipality is in dire need of salt, they need to make a request through their county emergency management agency/office.
"The emergency management officials will make the request to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.”
Bethlehem might go down that road, Alkhal said, confirming the city has been in touch with PennDOT.
“We budget for a typical/average winter, but due to the nature of the storms coupled with freezing temperatures since the beginning of January, we have had to use much more rock salt than average,” Alkhal said.
“Yes, we are concerned about the budget and will likely be going over it. We do plan on this type of thing happening so we have some options from where we will fill that deficit.
"But the main focus is to do all we feasibly can to ensure that we have the resources to respond to storms and make our road as safe as possible for travel for our citizens.”
Penndot Winter Services Guide by LehighValley Newsdotcom on Scribd
Other cities monitoring shortages
Officials in Allentown and Easton also are monitoring reports of shortages happening across the commonwealth.
“Here in Allentown, we believe we have enough supply to get us through the winter,” city Communications Manager Genesis Ortega said.
“While we do have a couple of shipments on back order, we don’t anticipate needing them this season. If those shipments arrive later, we’ll store them for next winter.”
"If for some reason we get a number of additional winter storms and the supplier is not able to deliver on their obligation then there could be a concern about running short.”Easton Director of Public Services Dave Hopkins
Easton is in the same boat, and officials are monitoring the forecast.
“We have a decent supply of salt at the moment which should get us through several storms,” said Dave Hopkins, the city’s director of public services.
“From a contractual standpoint we are also guaranteed at least another 800 tons for this season, which for our typical usage should be adequate.
"That said, if for some reason we get a number of additional winter storms and the supplier is not able to deliver on their obligation then there could be a concern about running short.”
