Watch this wild (and inspirational) video out of New Bedford following the blizzard

Driving conditions remain somewhat treacherous as New Bedford continues to dig itself out from Monday’s blizzard, with many side streets still blanketed in snow. 

But New Englanders rarely shy away from a challenge, blizzard or no. 

New Bedford resident Allie Crane said she was impressed when she saw a pickup truck trudging through the heavy snow near Madeira Avenue and Earle Street, which still wasn’t fully plowed as of Tuesday afternoon. Crane pulled out her phone and shot a quick video of the truck valiantly forging ahead anyway, albeit with heavy use of the accelerator and some occasional slipping.  

“Wow, I think he’s actually gonna make it,” Crane remembered thinking. “Either that or swerve into the other cars.”

Earlier in the day, she and her neighbors worked together to clear the bottom half of their street after only one snowplow made a pass that morning. 

“Everyone was out shoveling their cars. But we all continued to the street because we all damn knew we weren’t seeing another plow,” she said via text. “I was tired of watching all the cars get stuck in front of my house, so that’s why I went and shoveled their intersection. Everyone was helping one another and interacting like a community during one of the greatest snowstorms ever!!” 

Still, Crane said she watched about 10 cars get stuck going up the top half of the street, which remained caked with snow. 

Enter: Scott Vicente, the pickup driver seen in Crane’s video. He said he was out and about Tuesday checking on some loved ones and doing rounds on multiple properties where he’s responsible for ensuring the walkways and paths are clear.

“Driving conditions were horrible, only main streets are completely cleared,” he said over text. “At least 50% of side streets are really rough or not even touched yet.”

And when it came to getting through snowy roads like Earle Street, Vicente had a simple strategy: “It was all or nothing and get stuck.”

Crane has seen other vehicles struggling to make it up her street, most of them eventually needing to stop and turn around. She said trucks and Jeeps have generally had an easier go of it, though not without some difficulty. 

Despite his own successful jaunt up Earle Street, Vicente urged other New Bedford drivers to be patient and stay home if they can while the city works to clear the rest of the roads.

“Don’t try to go down a side street that has not been plowed. Even passed over streets like what I was doing have giant ruts, and cars are just getting hung up on them,” he explained. “If you don’t have a good size truck and know how to drive, then don’t even try!”

Abby Patkin

Staff Writer

Abby Patkin is a general assignment news reporter whose work touches on public transit, crime, health, and everything in between.

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