Members of Ball State’s landscaping department worked to clear the roads and sidewalks on campus of snow and ice from 4:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. on Jan. 12 while students attended their second day of classes.
Besides the cold temperature and wind chill, snow would stop and start throughout the day, which created an additional challenge for landscaping department employees such as Jean Wheat, who has worked for the university for 23 years.
“[We] didn’t have enough staff; not when it did what it did today, where it kept snowing in the morning, because then we have to turn around and start all over again,” Wheat said. “We also only have so much equipment. … When we do snow removal it’s move, move, move.”
Wheat said academic buildings, Bracken Library and dining halls are priority areas for snow removal, and the sidewalks are salted to make sure everything is clear for students who take night classes.
Wheat said being in the equipment is stressful because students don’t always move out of the way.
“Sometimes during class break we just have to shut it down because there’s so many kids walking down the sidewalk," Wheat said. "It’s just stressful all the way around."
Darrel Graham also works for the landscaping department. He drove an equipment truck around campus to plow, shovel and salt.
“We have our own area, but we have to make sure all the steps and ramps are priority,” Graham said.
Sophomore psychology major Henry Huynh’s commute to campus was 20 minutes longer because he “was put on more high alert while driving.”
“I had to be extremely cautious with how fast I was going, my speed and my steering," Huynh said. "It definitely made me the defensive driver that driving instructors talk about. I think Ball State did a good job [clearing roads], but Muncie in general could have done a much better job.”
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