Town weathers winter’s worst

WEST MILFORD – Despite a week of winter’s worst weather, the township seemed to come through virtually unscathed.
“All is good on the home front,” Mayor Michele Dale said Thursday afternoon.
During the week, West Milford experienced two different snow events, each dropping several inches, and then below zero temperatures Wednesday and Thursday.
Following a seasonal day on Monday, the first front moved through the community on Tuesday and Tuesday night dropping around four inches of snow.
Office of Emergency Management Coordinator Ed Steines said Wednesday that crews were out in force to keep roads salted and plowed.
The crews were sent home around 1 a.m. Wednesday to get some sleep and then came back at 7 a.m. for the second front.
That storm consisted of snow squalls that quickly coated the ground with about two more inches of snow, followed by strong winds and rapidly dropping temperatures.
By late Wednesday into Thursday, temperatures dropped below zero during the night and only reached the teens by afternoon.
The front brought extreme cold to much of the nation with some places reportedly colder than Antartica with temperatures around -65 degrees.
On Wednesday, the township’s OEM put out an alert that anyone needing to use the warming centers at town hall or the library, should contact police.
As of Thursday, Dale said that she was not aware of anyone that needed to use the centers.
According to forecasts from the National Weather Service, temperatures were expected to moderate throughout the weekend and possibly reach the 50s by early next week.
Both Dale and Steines said Wednesday that the town was prepared for the onslaught of winter weather.
While the school district had delayed openings both Wednesday and Thursday, Dale said Superintendent Alex Anemone contacted her to compliment the town’s efforts to keep the roads clear.