By Natalie De La Garza
Staff Writer
CARIBOU, Maine — The most northeastern city in the nation is no stranger to snowfall, but this last storm that rolled through Caribou brought extra slick road conditions for the better part of a week.
Roads were so slick that as of mid-Monday morning, Town Taxi in Caribou had temporarily restricted their fairs to in-town only on account of the rough driving conditions.
“I know that everyone is out there doing their jobs (to remove the snow) because I see them, but the roads feel greasy,” said owner of Town Taxi Lori Hodsdon. Hodsdon and her cab drivers witnessed plenty of plows scraping the snow off the roads, but even Caribou Public Works Director Dave Ouellette corroborated that the winter weather, topped off by the Sunday/Monday storm, left the roads pretty slick even after his crew put in about 30 hours of overtime.
“You get just a little bit of rain on top of the snow — it’s so slippery it’s unbelieveable,” Ouellette said.
The greasy roads led to hazardous conditions for drivers; officers of the Caribou Police Department responded to 13 accidents and four vehicles off the road between Thursday and Monday afternoon.
The most serious of the accidents occurred during the sleet and freezing rain of Dec. 21, when two vehicles struck head-on.
Elizabeth Keaton, of Caribou, was traveling southbound on U.S. Route 1 when she lost control of her 2007 Kia; Keaton slid into the northbound lane and struck Carol Cote, of Limestone, who was driving a 2005 Honda. Officer Jay Trainer of CPD responded to the collision, and the accident is still under investigation. No injuries were reported at the scene, but Keaton was driven to the hospital by a family member.
Though drivers in Caribou experienced difficulties, things were very different one town over; Limestone Police Chief Stacey Mahan said that as of Monday morning, Limestone police officers hadn’t received any calls for assistance since the last vehicle accident on Friday, Dec. 13.
Meterologist in Charge at the Caribou office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Rich Okulski explained that the slippery road conditions during the Dec. 22 weather event, which dropped roughly 6 inches of snow on Caribou, were resultant of low moisture levels. During the Sunday storm, for instance, an inch of rain was packed into only seven inches of snow — that’s a pretty high water content, compared to the 20 inches of snow for one inch of rain during the snowstorm on Dec. 15.
Mix a little sleet or freezing rain on top of water-dense snow, and “you’ll get a slippery mix on the ground,” Okulski said.
While Caribou’s 11-person snow removal crew is doing their part to sand, salt and plow the streets, city officials are reminding Caribou drivers to please be mindful of where they park their vehicles. When the streets are dotted with parked cars, it poses a challenge for plows trying to clear the roads — and leads to safety hazards for other vehicles.
“It would greatly help the public works departments of both Caribou and Presque Isle if people didn’t park on the streets — or if people could move their vehicles before the plows get there,” Ouellette said. “That helps a lot.”
Aside from clearing the way for the plows, Hodsdon suggests people stay home when the roads are as treacherous as they were earlier this week.
“When the roads are greasy, stay home unless you absolutely have to go out,” Hodsdon said. She also recommended that vehicles be equipped with really good studded snow tires, an extra blanket, and plenty of gas, “and give yourself plenty of time to get where you’re going,” Hodsdon emphasized. “Don’t try to hurry.”
A seasoned driver of Aroostook roadways, Hodsdon also recommends that drivers keep a lookout for signs along their drive — like moose tracks going across the road, or indications of hazardous conditions.
“If your headlights are glaring off the road — slow down; it probably means there’s black ice,” she said. Her drivers work hard to safely reach their destinations, and Hodsdon hopes all motorists show equal courtesy for the other vehicles sharing the road.
“Be as careful of everyone else’s driving as you are of your own,” she cautioned.
