NEW LONDON, Conn. (WTNH) — Winter is here and the possibility of snow is in the forecast this week. Cities and towns in Connecticut are getting ready. Crews spent the day unloading a ship at Admiral Harold E. Shear State Pier in New London that was carrying more than 45,000 metric tons of road salt. It arrived Saturday morning from Egypt. Crews will be working around the clock to unload it. They hope to be done by Wednesday.
In 2007 the Connecticut Department of Transportation switched to using only salt to treat the roads.
Cities, towns and private snow removal contractors did the same thing. The owner of the company that imported the salt says there’s now a great need for it.
“We did away with the sand usage, so back then we only had two distribution points,” said Steven Farrelly, owner of DRVN Enterprises Incorporated. “I felt there was a need even way back ten years ago for another place where the salt could be stockpiled and to be able to get it out in a timely fashion when needed by all the contractors and the state and municipalities.”
The salt will be going to towns and contractors near New London and as far away as the Hartford area.
