Governor Dannel Malloy said on Thursday that Connecticut is running short on road salt. He declared a state of emergency to request the federal government address the salt shortage.
Malloy said he is directing state emergency management personnel to reach out to cities and towns on Thursday night to get more information about their salt supplies.
The governor is seeking information about how much salt cities and towns have on hand, and how much they typically use in a storm. "This will enable us to pursue a request to the federal government," he said, "to assist the communities to increase their supplies as the winter season continues."
Malloy expects a delivery of salt on Friday or Saturday that will help ease the situation. He said he is asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency if stockpiles of salt are available, noting that demand in many states is very high after a number of snow and ice storms.
The Connecticut Department of Transportation said earlier in the day that its plows were having a hard time keeping up with the fast-accumulating snow. The storm was forecast to bring as much as a foot of snow or more to Connecticut. DOT spokesman Kevin Nursick said that conditions were poor as snow was falling at two to three inches an hour in some areas. He said that drivers could expect to encounter a significant amount of snow on the roads.
During his briefing, Malloy said the state was experiencing a "lull" in the precipitation, and that another one to four inches of snow will arrive later Thursday night.
This report includes information from The Associated Press.
