A blizzard buried the town on Friday, but many hours of plowing and a few broken down trucks later, Highway Department crews made all of Monroe's roads passable, according to First Selectman Steve Vavrek.
Since 2 p.m. on Sunday, he said 100% of the roads had become passable for emergency vehicles with most to the full extent.
"I'm very proud of our DPW for getting the roads open," Vavrek said Sunday night. "These guys did a great job getting things up and running," he added of the maintenance on trucks that broke down during the effort. "I just give credit to our DPW."
However, due to the continued struggle in surrounding towns to clear roadways, Vavrek said a number of town and Board of Education employees are unable to make it to work.
Earlier on Sunday, Supt. of Schools James Agostine announced the closing of schools for Monday and the first selectman added other closings, including Monroe Town Hall offices, Edith Wheeler Memorial Library and the Monroe Senior Center.
Vavrek sent out an email at 8:47 p.m. on Sunday to say his budget presentation is still on for Monday night in the Masuk High School media center at 6:30.
The first selectman asks residents to drive safely and to be considerate of their neighbors while clearing their driveways.
"Please don't plow your driveways into the road — and everybody keep safe," Vavrek said. "There are still some sight-line issues and we're trying to get those done ASAP."
Because of what I saw today, I would like to extend a hand of gratitude and say THANK YOU to Monroe's DPW for the comparably wonderful road work that they have done. Thank you, guys!!!
Kudos to Monroe's DPW for a job well done!!! One of the deepest snows ever, and you got our town up and running within such a short amount of time. Thank you!
Monroe DPW wins the gold medal. The silver and bronze will not be awarded locally this year. Great job, guys.