After the blizzard dumped 30 inches of snow blanketed the
city Jan. 22 through Jan. 23, and even more fell last in the following days,
the DPW worked overtime to keep its
citizens safe and informed. 

"Everyone is doing their part
and we appreciate it,” Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone said on Jan. 28, a day after Somerville

officially emerged from almost a week of snow emergency status.

“We’re finally catching up with this storm, which is the worst in more than two decades,” the mayor said.

“The storm gave the city a chance to test its newly redesigned Web site: www.ci.somerville.ma.us, by posting snow emergency
warnings front and center on its homepage,” he said.

 “The new Web site makes it possible to give residents timely information right on the homepage,” said Curtatone. “We’re still getting the kinks out but it was a great tool to have during such a difficult snow situation.”

 The Web site  new design eliminated the need for anxious

Somerville

 “It’s a lot better than watching one of the broadcast channels to see whether your
school is closed,” Curtatone said.

The mayor said, “The Web is a much more efficient way to
convey timely information.”  

 The city of

Somerville

also broadcast snow emergency information on the city cable channel and
operated a snow information hotline at (617) 628-SNOW, he said.

One example, Curtatone said was when Fire Chief Kevin
Kelleher issued several snow-related warnings on the Web site that asked Somerville
residents to keep heating vents clear of snowdrifts and to clear snow away from
fire hydrants. 

 There are other winter dangers that need to be considered,
the mayor said.

 Blocked heating vents on the sides of houses pose a
significant safety risk, as a pregnant

Plymouth

woman and her two children discovered, he said.

 The family was poisoned by carbon monoxide gas when their
house’s heating vents were blocked by snow, causing the deadly gas to back up
inside the home. The mother and children
were in critical condition in a

Boston

hospital, he said.

 “Blocked vents can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning and
possible death,” said Kelleher. “Residents must check those vents regularly,
especially if new snow falls on top of the record amounts we’ve already
received.” 

 Kelleher also asked

Somerville

residents to excavate buried fire hydrants from piles of  snow.