Cities across Northeast Ohio are running dangerously low on salt to treat the roads.
Last week, Cleveland Heights reported a salt shortage. Now, the following cities say they have the same problem:
- Avon
- Avon Lake
- Bedford
- Berea
- Chagrin Falls
- Cleveland
- Columbia Station
- Elyria
- Hiram
- Lakewood
- Lorain
- Moreland Hills
- Newburg Heights
- North Royalton
- North Ridgeville
- Olmsted Township
- Parma
- Shaker Heights
- South Amherst
- Strongsville
- Twinsburg
- Westlake
Watch the latest update on the salt shortage from Tessa DeTirro:
Lorain County said there is a salt shortage, and they are mixing salt with gravel to stretch until they get the next order.
The cities say delayed deliveries from supplier Cargill are the reason for their shortage.
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Avon posted on Facebook that despite placing an order with Cargill last week, its next delivery won't be coming until February. The city has been conserving salt for several weeks and will continue to do so.
Avon officials said salt use may be limited and prioritized for main roads, hills and curves. Side streets may receive little or no salt.
North Royalton is dealing with a similar situation. The city posted on Facebook that it has been rationing salt for more than three weeks. They ordered 1,000 tons last Thursday. The city only received 300 tons due to back-order issues cited by Cargill.
North Royalton officials said they currently have about 400 tons of salt in reserves. An average three-day snow event usually means the city uses 1,500 tons of salt. City officials said they will conserve the salt for main streets, hills and curves. Streets will be plowed, but salt will be rationed.
The City of Cleveland said it is also stretching its salt supply. Cleveland City Spokesperson Tyler Sinclair said the city placed salt orders since August, but 20,000 tons of that salt have not been delivered yet. Cleveland is now down to less than 10,000 tons in stock. The city uses between 4,000 and 7,000 tons of salt per snow event, depending on the storm's size.
"It's a scary time right now," Sinclair said. "But, we're doing everything we can. We asked the suppliers and the vendors to step up on their end as well."
Until they get that salt, the City of Cleveland will prioritize the salt it has for main roads, hills, dangerous intersections and near hospitals and schools. The city also plans to increase plowing.
Meanwhile, Twinsburg said in a Facebook post that it received two truckloads on Wednesday, but future shipments would be based on availability.
The City of Strongsville said it would not be salting residential streets during the shortage. Instead, available salt would be used for the city's busiest roads.
South Amherst officials say the shortage is impacting them, too, and are urging drivers to be cautious, and crews will work to keep roads clear.
Avon Lake told residents they want to be transparent and said Service Department has been in communicating with Cargill directly and were told that road salt was delayed due to back-order issues. The city currently has 1,000 tons of road salt on order, but the company said it is not likely to reach until February.
The City of Bedford said it is experiencing supply and demand issues with salt like other cities in Northeast Ohio, saying its supply is critically low. Bedford also has a contract with Cargill and said the salt they ordered on Jan. 14 and Jan. 20 have still not been delivered. The city said all main roads will be plowed, but only main roads, secondary streets intersections, hills and curves will be salted.
Westlake said to extend its current supply of salt as delays continue, salting streets will be done as needed and will be timed for the best results. Snow removal will happen as usual on main roads, secondary streets and developments.
Berea is another city on the salt shortage list. The city says its crews will be prioritizing bridges, main roads, and key intersections for salt application. Berea says side streets won't be salted until supplies are normal again. All roads will be plowed including the unsalted ones.
The shortage stems from delays in salt mine production, combined with state and local agencies receiving priority distribution for public safety reasons.
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RELATED: Where's all the salt? Plow companies grappling with salt shortage as winter peaks
In a statement, supplier Cargill said:
"Our team in Cleveland is working overtime to continue to meet the needs of our customers as we continue to see winter weather events across the state. We continue to work with our customers to ensure salt is available where it is needed most."
Some good news is the Ohio Department of Transportation confirmed it has sufficient inventory for the rest of the winter. The department has 32,000 tons of salt on hand for District 12, which includes Cuyahoga, Lake and Geauga counties.
ODOT said its ability to store salt has kept it well stocked. In extreme cases, it can share salt with other districts across the state.
This isn't the first time Northeast Ohio has faced a salt shortage despite having a salt mine right here.
WATCH:
RELATED: We have salt mines. So why are we short on salt?
