Snow removal crews brave blizzard during overnight shift
Workers cleared roughly 3 million cubic feet of snow
Photo courtesy of Maria Petrosillo
Photo courtesy of Maria Petrosillo
Howling winds and a strengthening blizzard at 11 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 22 meant most of Cambridge hunkered down indoors. But for Maria Petrosillo, an overnight foreman in MIT’s custodial services, it was time to head outside and clock in for a long night at work.
When heavy snowstorms, like February’s blizzard that blanketed MIT with nearly two feet of snow, hit campus, the Institute’s facilities team quickly mobilizes to clear snow as fast as possible. In addition to ground crews, workers from other departments like custodial services and housing are tapped to assist with snow removal, according to Director of Campus Services Marty O’Brien.
Petrosillo and her colleagues were among those who answered the call to work as snow shovelers overnight through the blizzard despite the biting cold.
“We work from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. and it’s a difficult shift,” Petrosillo said. “The overnight shift takes on the majority of everyday work, since not too many people are on campus, so more work can be done without interruption.”
O’Brien said that while some institutions can wait until the storm’s end to begin snow removal, MIT’s “residential community requires continuous snow management during a storm.”
“Students need to travel safely to dining halls during the storm, and we must keep emergency routes clear,” O’Brien said.
Still, working through the storm means that conditions can get brutal. One worker shared that white-out conditions meant that they “couldn’t even see a couple feet in front” of them at times; another expressed that February’s storm was as bad as the “Blizzard of ’78,” during which Boston received a record-breaking 27.1 inches of snow.
O’Brien estimated that the snow removal teams, with the help of plows and front-end loaders, cleared roughly 3 million cubic feet of snow from 55 acres of hardscape on campus over the course of the storm. Yet, despite their best efforts, the blizzard ultimately resulted in the cancellation of two school days.
Grounds Services Supervisor Sogna Scott praised the mechanics for “handling breakdowns” of equipment caused by the “heavy wet snow” and also expressed gratitude for the work of operators and shovelers.
“Our operators and shovelers work tirelessly clearing doorways, ramps, stairs, and keeping emergency exits and paths clear,” Scott said. “They are amazing and understand the urgency of their work, even when it’s repetitive.”
On March 3, Harvard’s custodial union, Services Employment International Union 32BJ, reached a tentative deal on a new contract after five months of negotiations. That same union covers many of the individuals who perform snow removal and other work at MIT. In an email statement, Communications Director for Campus Services Monica Lee confirmed that MIT anticipates to “bargain in good faith” with the union later this spring.
On working the night shift, Petrosillo added that “our hard work sometimes goes unnoticed because we don’t get to see too many people,” but that “when we do get to interact with people, we will always get the ‘thank you’ that makes all the night shift hours we work worth it.”