The City of Hopkinsville experienced its second major snowfall of the season overnight Tuesday and into Wednesday morning. Despite this unusual event, the City’s Public Works Department has an ample supply of salt (sodium chloride) on hand, having received a delivery of 125 tons on December 28, 2010. The City anticipates receipt of another 125 tons within the next two weeks in anticipation of further winter hazards.

The Street Division of Public Works had two salt trucks in operation at 1:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 26^th. Streets’ other two trucks and two backhoes were out by 5:00 a.m. in advance of workday traffic. The street crews are dispatched to cover four defined snow routes of city streets, a total of 54 miles. Additionally, the Kentucky Department of Transportation was working on its state maintained roads within the city early this morning.

The City of Hopkinsville uses sodium chloride, which does not actually melt the ice, but lowers the freezing point of water. Depending on the surface temperature of the street and the air temperature, sodium chloride solution freezes at approximately 22 degrees Fahrenheit, below which it becomes ineffective.

As always, citizens are urged to exercise extreme caution when driving on snow or ice covered roads.