LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. — When the recommendation is to stay inside, snowplow drivers don’t really have an option—they have to hit the road.
In Lee’s Summit, for example, 40 drivers are taking 12-hour shifts to make sure the roads are clean.
Michelle Wahnon has been a snowplow operator for a bit over a year but really gained a lot of experience in January.
“My very first day out on the roads was with all that ice. I was like, ‘What did I get myself into?’” Wahnon said.
After the historic snowfall, she has accumulated confidence.
“It just becomes muscle memory at this point,” Wahnon said.
“They're all professionals now, after that last storm,” said Assistant Director of Operations at the City of Lee's Summit Shawn Graff. “We’ve hired a lot of new people in the last two to three years, and we just haven’t seen these big snows. So, they gained a lot of very valuable experience over that last snow.”
Wahnon is one of the very few women drivers in the city and is paving the way for others.
“It’s definitely a man's environment, but they have welcomed me with open arms and treated me like one of the guys,” Wahnon said.
She starts her day at 7 a.m., works a 12-hour shift, and takes pride in what she does.
“It’s really making a difference, helping the people of the city of Lee’s Summit. It just feels really good,” Wahnon said. “That’s all I’ve ever really wanted in a job.”
She says the biggest challenge she faces on the road is parked cars.
“It makes it impossible with how big that truck is—it can't get between two vehicles on opposite sides of the road,” Wahnon said.
Graff also asked residents to be patient, as they are hoping to address residential areas of the city on Thursday morning.
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