ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, January 21, 1996 TAG: 9601220007
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG
SOURCE: ELISSA MILENKY STAFF WRITER
During the snowstorm, they were more sought after than a loaf of bread or a new release at the video store. In many cases, people literally tried to flag them down at gas stations, on residential streets, even from their driveways.
``The phone rang all day long, one after another,'' said Dave Carter, owner of Carter's Excavating in Blacksburg.
Carter, like many other private contractors with the kind of heavy equipment that can remove several feet of snow, was bombarded with calls and requests during and after the snowstorm.
Churches and businesses wanted parking lots cleared. Farmers needed paths plowed so they could haul hay to hungry cattle.
Even the Virginia Department of Transportation needed extra help with the roads.
Though the work was hard and the hours were long during the snowstorm that paralyzed the area for over a week, these private contractors made anywhere from $2,500 to more than $9,000, depending on whether they were one-man operations or small companies with several employees and machines.
Carter and his nine employees primarily cleared main roads for VDOT in Montgomery County, working in shifts so they could plow around the clock. After Friday evening, when they finished the work for VDOT, the company cleared several private driveways and parking lots.
``We pushed 107 hours straight through. We never stopped,'' said Carter, who himself worked 60 hours the week of the storm. The company ran two backhoes with chains, each for $45 an hour.
Plowing a typical driveway cost anywhere from $30 to $45, depending on the contractor and the amount of work. Parking lots averaged about $75.
Blacksburg resident William Graham, who also has a backhoe, had about 40 snow-clearing jobs and earned about $2,500. Graham handled most of the jobs himself, although his son helped out.
``A big storm like this, all these snowdrifts, it's just rough,'' Graham said. ``One man, I pushed him out three times.''
Though Graham and Carter both made a profit from the storm, the snow is a short-term benefit for them. Both make their money from construction work such as digging septic systems and water lines, which means they cannot do their jobs until the snow melts and the ground dries. Snow removal of this magnitude also strains on the equipment.
The construction delays caused by the snow will hurt the contractors for at least a month, said Carter, who has been in the excavating business for 11 years.
For those who have other full-time jobs and just make snow removal a side business, however, the storm really was a bonanza. Mark Sawyer, who works at Hubbell Lighting in Blacksburg, went to sleep at 1 a.m. after he worked the second shift and got up at 4 a.m. to dig out driveways and parking lots.
For three years, the Christiansburg resident has had a side business, Sawyer's Snow Removal, Landscape and Yardwork. Without counting expenses and labor, Sawyer made about $2,800 in extra cash. ``I kind of enjoyed it, but it was long hours,'' he said.
Blacksburg's Quality Carpet Cleaning & Restoration also got into the snow removal business during the storm, though it only provided this service to its usual customers. Owner Keith Bolte admits the two responsibilities do not necessarily go together, but he has a tractor and a truck with a plow that would go to waste during snowstorms if they are not used.
``You generally can't clean carpets when it's snowing,'' said Bolte, who is being flooded with calls to repair water damage from the storm. ``It pretty much made up for the lost time.''
All of these private contractors said they had more requests than they could handle the week after the storm. While he isn't complaining, Sawyer said he has had enough snow for awhile. He even cringed a bit when weather forecasters predicted a smaller snowstorm later in the week.
``I was glad it wasn't but a few inches,'' he said.
LENGTH: Medium: 76 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Private trucks with plows attached were used all overby CNBthe New River Valley during the recent blizzard to help clear snow
from roads and parking lots. color GENE DALTON/STAFF