Video: Ride-A-Long With A Cass County Snowplow During The Snowstorm

So many thoughts come to my mind watching this video of a Cass County snowplow driver doing his job. First, the long hours and a thankless job. During the snowstorm we experienced on Wednesday, it shows how critical the job is to public safety. The roads have to be plowed and made safe for driving. And the snow kept coming down. This is not a quick - clear the main roads once - and your back in the shop. This is - drive your route, and drive it again, and then drive it again three or four more times.

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From the post: “It’s stressful, and at times it’s difficult to see”. says Brad, one of our snowplow drivers. Keeping up with the snow today was not easy and when the wind picks up it’s much worse”.

(Cass County Road Commission via Facebook)

And as you watch the video, Brad, the driver says "This is what it looks like all day." The monotony of this is something a driver would have to fight. And then, factor in, the windshield wipers. Those wipers have got to be hypnotizing. But what do you do when you're staring at a 12 hour, or worse, an eighteen-hour day?

The Cass County Road Commission writes:

"As he sits up straight on his seat, back hurting from being tense and on edge for hours while operating the three plows, front, underbody and wing all while looking at each mirror, the salt spinner and other gauges it’s understandable these drivers are exhausted after a day like today." - CCRC

I'm also reminded of something I read about TV cop shows. Actual cops would say that Barney Miller came closest to capturing what a real-life day of a cop looked like. It's not all shoot-em-ups. Yes, it's a very dangerous job, but a lot of the hours are filled with the mundane.

Thankfully, this time it was only a couple of days.