At first glance, it seemed the Ohio Department of Transportation was stockpiling snow at its new Lawrence County facility in Ironton as men tromped through the fluffy mounds drifting ever upward.

But this white stuff, namely salt, will help combat winter weather conditions. ODOT received its first shipment of 1,000 tons to its location in the South Ironton Industrial Park on Thursday.

Jeff Leach was operating the snow blower that propelled a steady shower of salt into the facility's salt shed. Its interior resembled a winter wonderland as the salt shot into the air and left Leach covered in a thick, white coating.

While getting the salt into the domed structure isn't easy, getting it off clothes and out of hair can be even more difficult.

"It's hard," he said chuckling. "It takes about a half-hour in the shower (to get rid of the salt)."

Despite his best efforts, Leach said that salty taste sticks around for a couple of days. Fortunately for ODOT, the staying power helps keep roads drivable for Lawrence County motorists.

To prepare for the coming months, the department is bringing in supplies and servicing its fleet of vehicles. There are 14 trucks total, three at the Proctorville outpost, two at Wilgus and nine in Ironton.

On Thursday, auto technician John Dickess was working on some of that equipment, inspecting and making repairs as needed. He said that winter can definitely step up the demands on his time.

"Just the constant running when you get a snow, you'll be running around the clock, 24 to 48 hours at a time," he said.

While long hours are often the norm, the new state-of-the-art facility helps to ease the burden. It houses a large garage, offices and extensive grounds for storing equipment. ODOT relocated there in October.

"We've doubled in size," said Transportation Administrator Cecil Townsend. "We went to 8.3 acres, where at the old facility we had about four acres. We've doubled our storage area."

The additional space has also allowed ODOT to double its stockpile capability for salt. Its shed can hold 3,000 tons of salt. Due to its better facility, ODOT can now make its own salt brine rather than purchasing ready-made. The department relies heavily on the brine.

"If we know that we'll be getting some type of precipitation, we take a truck out and put brine on the hills and ridges which is just water and salt mixed," said Transportation Manager Bill Patrick. "What that does is keeps the snow from binding to the pavement."

Depending on the weather, repeated salt refilling may be necessary at the facility, Patrick said. Having an in-county salt supplier - namely Cargill Salt - saves time and money, however.

"I've seen a time when the old garage would be filled up three times in one winter," he said.

Patrick has worked with ODOT for 21 years.

He's seen a lot of winters come and go. Fortunately, last year's weather was less intense than years past.

"It was a mild winter. We haven't had a bad winter for about six or seven years, but 1997 was probably the worst we've seen," he said.

Snow can be a problem in Lawrence County, but usually ODOT deals with rain and ice. The latter can be a real challenge because like motorists, ODOT trucks do not move well on ice either, forcing them to use chains and extra precaution.

"If we know we're going to get ice Š we try to get out there and put material down before it (ice) bonds to the pavement and we'll use salt, grit and liquid calcium," Patrick said.

Grit and brine are used primarily on secondary roadways while U.S. 52 often receives a coating of calcium. Regardless of material used, speed is key.

"It's something you have to get on quick Š because once it bonds with that pavement, we've got a heck of a problem on these hills," he said. "We've got a lot of bad hills in this county that are very dangerous."

While no one can predict the weather with absolute accuracy, Patrick and fellow transportation manager Jerry Murnahan keep a check on weather reports to assure the department is prepared for whatever comes this way.

Someone is always on duty 24-hours a day year-round to monitor conditions and send crews out when necessary.

The crews will soon put in long hours - sometimes up to 16 hours a day during heavy snows - to keep roads clear. But ODOT tries to go with 12-hour shifts so that workers aren't overloaded.

"You do that (work 16 hours) two or three days in a row, you get exhausted. By the time they get a shower and get into bed, they don't get much sleep," Patrick said.

There are 31 full-time employees at ODOT. Everyone plays an important role in keeping Lawrence County roads - all 435 lane miles - in good condition.

"We've got a great bunch here," Townsend said.