Record levels of snow made for a heavy workload on Iowa DOT plows. “This was a pretty significant one. This had a lot of impact,” said DOT Winter Operations Administrator Craig Bargfrede.

As snow blanketed much of the state, Bargfrede made sure their crews did too. “Yesterday at the height I saw somewhere in the neighborhood of about 750 to 760 plows that were out and active on the system,” said Bargfrede.

Aside from the long hours by DOT workers behind the wheel, Mother Nature tested their ability to clear the snow. Bargfrede said, “Just the rate of the snowfall coupled with the winds really knocked down visibility. Visibility not only for our plow drivers but also for our traveling public.”

If that weren’t enough, he says seven DOT plows were rear-ended on duty. “Many times what we see is the traveling public seems to ignore the warnings and don’t slow down. They are not as cautious and don’t increase distance,” said Bargfrede.

Read the full article on the WHO-TV 13 website.