VDOT Ordered Plows, Tree Contractors on Standby Wednesday Night

Thousands of snow plow, tree contractors and salt truck drivers slept in their trucks Wednesday night, as the Virginia Department of Transportation ordered trucks to stand by on the side of the road or in parking lots for downed power lines and icy roadways. 

VDOT is warning drivers to be ready for "rapidly changing weather conditions," according to their website. "Monitor your local media and the National Weather Service resources for weather information."

Plows Waiting...

"The temperature is supposed to drop tonight (Wednesday). That's why we're still hanging around," said plow driver David Pullen of Rappahannock County's A-Z Services LLC, which has ten trucks contracted by VDOT to Fairfax County.

Pullen had been parked along Clifton Road for a few hours. "I'm sleeping here tonight. It's kind of hard to get comfortable, and a lot of people think that this is an easy job. It's kind of rough," he said. "We came in at midnight on Wednesday and couldn't sleep because we had to keep the roads clear."

Conditions were also slick in Mount Vernon. Plow driver Beatrice Ramirez, of Bustillos Trucking in Woodbridge, plans on living in her plow until Thursday.

"The roads aren't too bad right now," said Ramirez on Wednesday afternoon. "But yeah, I'll sleep in here. We started yesterday and we planned to be out for four days."   

The National Weather Service predicts strong winds and a high temperature of 42 degrees on Thursday. The low temperature will be 31 degrees. 

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