Winter Storm DFW: How Dallas Handles the Ice

DALLAS. The city of Dallas has been busy dealing with problems caused by the winter storm over the past two days, answering hundreds of emergency calls.

Over the past 24 hours, the Dallas Fire Department has responded to more than 750 incidents. There were also 200 appeals to zoo services for 200 appeals for animals left in the cold, 49 violations were identified.

Public works were also busy, with 45 trucks sent to sand bridges, overpasses and main roads to make them less slippery.

The department said they did not soak roads with pre-weather pre-treatment salt, but plan to use brine in the future and hope to buy more plows for future events.

The department said the neighboring roads were beyond repair and would simply have to be melted down.

“We don’t touch residential roads because we don’t have it [much] equipment and manpower to repair all the roads in the city,” said Dallas Public Works Director Ali Hatefi.

Hatefi said the city hopes tomorrow’s rain will help improve conditions.

The city has also secured hotels for 311 subscribers and is bracing for a spike in calls from burst pipes as temperatures begin to rise. There have been no calls yet.

The city’s health authorities said recycling and garbage collection will be canceled until conditions on the streets improve, which will only happen after the ice has melted.

To help the homeless, the city has also set up a library and recreation center as overcrowded facilities. About 700 homeless people are now housed, and the city says Oak Lawn and Warren churches are in dire need of volunteers.