To address potential hazards and the piling up of snow, FO&M monitors campus conditions around the clock, seven days a week, Gary Hill, FO&M director of facilities and grounds, said. After an inch of snowfall, a supervisor must call members of FO&M to begin shoveling and de-icing the walkways.
Members of FO&M work to clear ice and snow from sidewalks and streets in shifts with no set hours, according to Hill.
"We only come in when our services are needed," Hill said.
Although illegally-parked vehicles and bicycles left around campus can interfere with drivers' ability to access certain streets and paths with snowplows, FO&M maintains sufficient staff and equipment to handle large amounts of snow and difficult conditions, according to Hill. Heavy snowfall has forced the College to close on only a few occasions over the last 50 years.
"We are fully capable of meeting all of the challenges a New England winter can give us," Hill said. "Even when it is snowing, we will still be here to work to remove the snow and ice. We know that it is our responsibility to provide a safe campus."
When dealing with wintry conditions, the Town of Hanover's winter maintenance program follows a specific snow removal and ice control policy, last revised in 2007, according to the Public Works Department's website.
"[FO&M employees] do their own thing, we do our own thing," Hanover's Director of Public Works Peter Kulbacki said.
College and town employees play "distinct" roles in snow and ice removal, but they coordinate when conditions on the ground necessitate it, according to Kulbacki. Public Works Department employees focus on "making sure people can come and go from the downtown area," he said.
Snowplows generally begin to remove snow one day after three or more inches accumulates. The Public Works Department aims to remove snow before the temperature drops, creating hazardous, icy road conditions, according to Kulbacki.
The town's policy categorizes roads according to four major classifications major arteries and collectors; bus routes and steep inclines; minor arteries and collectors; and rural roads and urban side streets. These classifications are based on the level of traffic they receive and the amount of snow that the roads tend to accumulate.
The roads surrounding Dartmouth's campus fall under the first category Class A streets and are subject to continuous plowing and salting, according to the Public Works Department's website. These streets must have bare pavement exposed as soon as is reasonable after a winter storm. The acceptable level of accumulated snow on these streets ranges from one to three inches.
Sand may not be used unless additional street traction is needed, according to the policy, which specifies the chemical combinations of salts used to de-ice the streets within certain temperature ranges.
Despite falling temperatures and low wind chill factors, the current weather seems to predict a mild winter, which would reduce "wear and tear" on vehicles and save money, according to Hill.
Nurses at Dick's House have also seen a relatively low number of snow and ice-related injuries so far this winter, according to College Health Services Director John Turco. Minor lacerations are not unusual, and most occurred this weekend as students ice skated, played hockey and skied at the Dartmouth Skiway, Turco said. Last week, shortly after the first snowstorm of Winter term, Dick's House treated a student with a minor case of frostbite, Turco said.
"People tend to stay indoors more when it's cold, so we don't see a remarkable increase in the number of cases we treat in the winter," Turco said. "The main things we worry about are excessive alcohol consumption, car accidents, frostbite and hypothermia."
Students are advised to check the weather report to dress appropriately for the weather and should be vigilant when crossing streets, especially because snow and ice cause greater braking delays for drivers, Turco said.
Staff writer Sam Rauschenfels contributed reporting to this article.
