Whitman County Gazette - Serving Whitman County since 1877

OAKESDALE-On the morning of Thursday, Dec. 1 a plow turned over on Hume Road, the Director and County Engineer of the Whitman County Public Works Department, Mark Storey confirmed that the operator was not injured.

"It was one of our operators out of Oakesdale," Storey said, explaining that the operator was plowing over the side of the road, hitting the pavement which grabbed his wheel and turned the plow on its side, "He didn't feel well at first, of course," he said, "he didn't need to see the doctor though, he was fine."

Roger Harnack | The Gazette

County crews work to free the overturned snow plow from the ditch.

Storey confirmed that they were able to get the plow back up, with very little damage, "I would imagine it took less than an hour," he said, noting that they called a commercial tow truck to help to avoid any major damage to the plow.

Storey noted that plows turning over isn't just an issue in Whitman County, but every county at this time of year due to the roads being slick. He noted that at most plows that turned over in a year was around five or six, "we have some winters when it doesn't happen at all," he said, noting that the operator of the plow on Hume was one of their more experienced operators.

"It's amazing that we don't put more sanders in the ditch during a winter, and that's a testament to our drivers," Storey added.