NORTHEAST OHIO — Cities across Northeast Ohio are running dangerously low on salt to treat the roads.
Avon, North Royalton, and Cleveland now join Cleveland Heights on the list of cities reporting a short supply of salt. The cities say delayed deliveries from supplier Cargill are the reason for their shortage.
WATCH:
Avon posted on Facebook that despite placing an order with Cargill last week. Their 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 they have 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 supplies 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.
The shortage stems from delays in salt mine production, combined with state and local agencies receiving priority distribution for public safety reasons.
WATCH:
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?
