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Mayor: Baltimore making progress on snow removal

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Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake gave an update on the snow removal process in Baltimore as of Tuesday morning.

She said the city is making good progress to clear up the historic snowfall, and has brought in more than 600 pieces of equipment to help with the effort. One of which is the Snow Dragon Snowmelter, which she says melts roughly 60 tons of snow per hour.

“We are under the biggest blizzard that the city has ever seen,” the mayor said. Crews have been working 12-hour shifts and contractors have come in to support the clean-up effort from as far away as Canada. With more equipment and personnel to take on the task, the mayor says the city is still "in a battle."

If you're in a neighborhood that hasn't yet seen a snow plow, "rest assured that we're coming," she said.

A sidewalk clearing ordinance will go into effect Wednesday morning requiring home and business owners to clear a two-foot path to make space for pedestrians. Homeowners will be fined $50 and commercial properties will be fined $100 if found in violation. The ordinance will keep pedestrians off the roads. 

Police commissioner Kevin Davis asked drivers to be aware of disappearing lanes and reduced visibility due to mounting snow piles. 

"We are working as hard as humanly possible" to tackle the city-wide snow removal, the mayor said. 

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