Snow barn clears the way

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Janine Thibault
  • 354th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska --  With 1.9 million square feet of airfield pavement plus an additional 105 miles of streets and parking lots waiting to be cleared in the winter, the 354th Civil Engineering Squadron Snow Barn continually have their hands full.

During winter, a team of 54 military members, five civilians, and an additional 18 seasonal employees work in shifts from September to March to keep snow cleared to support the mission. They are responsible for keeping roads cleared on-base with a hierarchy that determines the roadways to be cleared first. The flightline and munitions airfield have top priority as well as any roadway deemed mission essential -- this includes emergency roadways.

"Clearing the flightline is a constant job," said Tech. Sgt. Manuel Lara, the noncommissioned officer in charge of the 354th CES day shift. "By the time you get down one end, the other end is covered again--you have to go back and forth continually."

The snow barn keeps busy throughout the rest of the year as well performing tasks specific to the current season.

"It takes every operator available to keep the roads clear," added the El Paso, Texas native.

During "break-up," they remove water, caused by flooding, and sand, which was placed during winter to add grip. Some construction is also included in their duties. Throughout summer, they maintain pavement, work with concrete, asphalt and reestablish any dirt roads.

Safety is a main focus for the team due to the nature of the heavy equipment they operate for most of their duties. Members attend a snow school, daily and weekly safety briefings covering a variety of different situations, and conduct practice runs.

On the flightline, they implement precautions to avoid causing an accident with the aircraft operations, including take off and landing. The airfield supervisor ensures all crew are out of areas being cleared until snow is removed so they can resume their work. The vastness of the flightline requires it to be done in stages to get the whole flightline cleared for flying operations.

Although the flightline has top priority most of the pressures of the job come from clearing the roads in the housing area. Unlike the flightline, housing is more cramped and populated making a tense situation for the operators of the cumbersome machinery.

"The message we need to convey is that people need to be aware of us," said William Ferenc, the foreman of the 354th CES snow barn.

Whether it is being vigilant when the machinery is close or watching out for areas that have been closed off, residents should remain alert in order to minimize the chance of an accident.

"It's exciting to see one of these things coming down the street and people want to stand by and watch but they need to remember at 60,000 pounds, the equipment doesn't stop easily," Mr. Ferenc said.

The view from inside the equipment can hinder the operator's sight even more. Inside the snow blower, a large extension protrudes from the machine obscuring a blind spot. When the snow blower needs to back up the view presents another challenge considering the area directly behind the mechanism is hidden by the large back section.

Operating the machines requires the drivers to multi-task between safely maneuvering the large equipment, maintaining their attention between not plowing into the dump truck beside them or parked cars along the road. This is done in a mist kicked up by the machine itself while looking out for residents.

"Someone could pull up behind them and they will not be able to see them," said Mr. Ferenc.

It is important that people stay back a minimum of 100 feet behind the equipment to respect the size, visibility and capabilities of the machine. Children should be watched especially carefully and educated on safety around such large equipment. Safety around the machines is as important to the snow barn team as clearing snow to increase safety of operations.