LACKAWANNA, NY -- Lackawanna mayor, Geoffrey Szymanski accepted snow removal assistance from Erie County Monday because of a series of issues with their equipment and staffing.
Three of their seven salter/plows broke down overnight due to mechanical issues.
The Mayor also tells 2 On Your Side, because of a series of retirements, many of their drivers are new and unfamiliar with the snow plows and routes.
This resulted in 35-40% of the city being unplowed Monday morning, according to Tony DeSantis, Commissioner of the Department of Public Works.
2 On Your Side went to the DPW garage to check on the status of the disabled trucks.
We’re told one was back out on the road, but two have some serious mechanical issues. Mechanics tell Channel 2 it might take some time to get them both back on the road.
We asked the Mayor about truck maintenance prior to the winter season and he claims the city does have a preventative maintenance system in place, “It’s just this year, the first snowfall that we got was really heavy, really hard and it came fast.”
The snow shut down school and city government Monday, but Szymanski believes they should be back open Tuesday.