FARMINGTON HILLS (WWJ) – As snow pounds Metro Detroit on Wednesday, the U.S. Postal Service is asking residents to be kind to their local mail carriers and keep walkways clear.
One Farmington Hills neighborhood banded together to go a step beyond and helped a mail truck driver who got stuck.
While Metro Detroit freeways and mile roads were kept relatively clear of snow on Wednesday afternoon, side streets were a mess, as one mail carrier found out at a spot that’s “notorious” for people getting stuck.
WWJ’s Cassandra Llamas-Fossen was outside helping her family shovel their driveway Wednesday afternoon when her dog took off down the road towards some people. That’s when she noticed the mail truck and they were quick to jump in.
Some neighbors had already begun digging out the truck’s tires and using salt or sand to try to give the truck traction.
“Eventually my dad and I pushed him because he couldn’t get any traction. He got free for a little bit, then got stuck in front of our house so we had to push him all the way up the hill,” she said.
She said he was “very appreciative” of everyone who jumped in to help.
“Because he would’ve been stuck there for God knows how long. He would’ve never gotten out,” she said. “When I had gotten down there he was fishtailing, spinning in the back end. He could not get out.”
She said others should use their actions as an example to help others who may be in need during the storm.
“Delivery drivers are out, I saw the Amazon driver, the garbage man got stuck and had to back up and come around the other way. These people are out doing their jobs, serving the community,” she said. “If they’re out there doing that and you see them needing a hand or someone else, it really wasn’t a big deal for us to go out and help him and get him on his way.”
Ironically, Llamas-Fossen says, she, her mom and her sister got stuck in the exact same spot as the mail truck more than 15 years ago and neighbors came out to help them get out.
USPS officials on Wednesday sent out a reminder for residents to clear snow and ice from walkways, driveways, porches and areas around the mailbox.
“Slips, trips and falls continue to be the most frequent type of injury sustained by our carriers,” said Michigan 1 District Manager Rick Moreton. “As winter conditions worsen, so do the number of accidents. By simply clearing the way, customers help reduce the risk.”
Residents who receive delivery to roadside mailboxes also must keep the approach to, and exit from, the mailbox clear of snow and any other obstacles, like trash cans and other vehicles. The carrier needs to get in, and then out, without leaving the vehicle or backing up.
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