The man in charge of coordinating the University of Oklahoma's response to icy roads and sidewalks said Wednesday his department is prepared for the worst this winter.
Brian Ellis, director of OU facilities management, said that when inclement weather hits OU his department plays a large part in helping to resume normal campus operations.
“We want to ensure students have a safe place to walk and drive as quickly as possible,” Ellis said.
To achieve this goal, Ellis said he has already consulted with and prepared the three entities responsible for specific areas of campus for inevitable winter snowfall and ice.
“Roads and hauling, custodial services and then also landscape and grounds ... coordinate their efforts and take their own piece of the pie,” Ellis said.
Roads and hauling handle sanding and salting the streets, while custodial services are in charge of clearing everything in and near buildings and main entrances and grounds handle the sidewalks, Ellis said.
Ellis said the magnitude of the deployment by OU Facilities Management staff is dictated by the size of the disruption made by a storm, but that a hierarchy of important streets and sidewalks to clear is already in place.
“Basically we have priority routes just like any city would have,” Ellis said. “Our snow route pertains mostly to the main arteries of campus, including Brooks [Street], Jenkins [Avenue], Elm [Avenue] and Lindsey [Street] first. Once those are clear, we begin work inward to the secondary streets.”
Though the final decision to cancel classes during a storm rests with President Boren, according to university spokesman Chris Shilling, Boren does consult with Facilities Management to assess the safety risks on campus during a winter storm.
“[Boren] consults with individuals from facilities management, the National Weather Center as well as Norman and state employees to judge road conditions and potential safety concerns,” Shilling said.
Ellis said that though he has only been in his position since April, he is confident that if a storm comparable to last year’s Christmas snowfall occurs, his department will be able to cope.
“I keep hearing about the Christmas storm last year and 12 to 13 inches of snow on campus,” Ellis said. “It took us a little time to get everything cleared then, so we’re hoping not to have an event like that this year, but we’re confident we could cope with it if there is.”
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supplies 1 year, 4 months ago
The last college to never close? I live out in Harrah and my childs school is closed, so I don't have a choice. Be safe out there cause I'm sitting back at mi casa and enjoying my hot cocoa today!!!