Brookhaven town officials are preparing sanders and snowplows in anticipation of the advancing blizzard forecasted to hit the area on Friday.
"We have an army ready to go. This is New York and we have snowstorms, people expect them. We are ready," said Daniel Panico, Brookhaven councilman and deputy supervisor.
The National Weather Service has issued a Blizzard Watch for all of Suffolk County from Friday afternoon through Saturday afternoon, with forecasts calling for between 8 inches and 12 inches of snow across Brookhaven.
Panico said he approved the purchase of additional sand and salt Thursday morning in advance of the storm.
Brookhaven has 180 employees in its Highway Department on-call to begin sanding and salting roads early Friday, then clearing roadways once snow begins to accumulate. Parks department and waste management employees with the town are on back up.
The deputy supervisor said between the Town-owned vehicles and contractors, Brookhaven has between 450 and 500 snowplows on hand to help clear roads.
Panico said Town officials are concerned about the forecasted wind speeds of 25 to 35 miles per hour, with gusts up to 60 miles per hour, accompanying the expected heavy snow.
"The biggest concern will be, at some point, power loss with regard to snow weighing down lines and tree limbs. There could very well be power outages," he said.
Residents are asked to be prepared by stocking up on necessities and moving cars into driveways.
"It's safer for our plow operators plus it will save heartache and backache of digging out your car if it's at your curbside," Panico said.
He also asked drivers to stay off the roads after the storm, unless travel is necessary, to give workers a chance to safely clear the roads.
Brookhaven will be regularly updating its website with any notices for residents throughout the storm. The free firewood event scheduled for Feb. 9 at the Town landfill has been postponed to Feb. 16.
