New Canaan Dog Owners: Protect Their Paws

By Michael Dinan

Most of us wisely are staying off New Canaan roads Thursday, as a wet, heavy snow turns to sleet (and then snow again), and roads feel more like Mill Pond than Main Street. What awaits us are slush and ice. What awaits our dogs is a painful, dangerous landscape of rock salt.

As Shirleen Dubuque, owner of Village Critter Outfitter on Cherry Street—yes, she’s open Thursday, until about 2 or 3 p.m.—says in a recent blog entry, booties for your pal’s paws are a primary source of protection. Paw wax, from Village Critter Outfitter in New Canaan, helps protect dogs who walk on rock salt following winter storms. Credit: Shirleen Dubuque

“A dog will lick to clean his paws, as well as ingest the chemicals found in the salt and sand,” Dubuque says. “The booties will offer paw and digestive protection.”

New Canaan Openings & Closings: Winter Storm Pax

Car on Heritage Hill Road during Winter Storm Pax, Feb. 13, 2014. Credit: Terry Dinan

[The photo at right is a car on Heritage Hill Road that swiftly is being buried. Let’s hope the plows know it’s there, because by noon Thursday, nobody will be able to see it.]

By Terry & Michael Dinan

The snow is falling—ultimately, the town is expected to see a foot or more of snow and sleet through the day Thursday from Winter Storm Pax. New Canaan Department of Public Works is seeking help from property and business owners in keeping roads and sidewalks clear. Openings & Delays
New Canaan during Winter Storm Pax, Feb.

DPW to Business, Property Owners: Help Keep Roadways, Sidewalks Clear of Snow, Ice

The following bulletin has been issued by the New Canaan Department of Public Works, as Winter Storm Pax bears down on New Canaan. It’s expected to leave a foot or more of snow and ice in its wake. Residential and Business Property Owners:  Please help keep our roadways clear of snow and ice. In many instances, upon clearing snow from our roadways, our DPW crews are faced with icing conditions caused by private snow removal companies plowing snow into or across our roadways.  Our Town Code states that no person shall place any snow or ice into any highway within the Town. Failure to do so shall result in the Owner being subject to a fine not exceeding $200 for each occurrence and for each day the material remains in place.  Please inform your private contractors of our concerns and help us keep our roadways safe.

New Canaan DPW: ‘Salt Is at a Premium Right Now’

By Michael Dinan

New Canaan public works officials are focused on securing salt for clearing roads as Winter Storm Pax bears down on the region. The National Weather Service is calling for accumulations of up to a foot or more in New Canaan, with heavy snow and sleet falling throughout Thursday. Tiger Mann, assistant director and senior engineer in the New Canaan Department of Public Works, said the entire region is seeing salt shortages. “We’re working on it,” Mann said. “Salt is at a premium right now.”

The weather service says snow will develop “late tonight and continue during the day Thursday before tapering off Thursday night.” Dangers include not just treacherous roads but also the dangers of flat rooftops and trees—many still carrying snow from last week’s storm—collapsing beneath the weight of sleet and snow.