Lakes Region plow drivers are starting to feel the strain, following weeks of back-to-back storms that have left nearly 5 feet of snow across the region.

The drivers have repeatedly plowed snow through the night, with some staying on the roads for more than 30 hours in a row, according to public works directors in Windham, Raymond and Standish.

“In the last three weeks, we’ve probably got about 5 feet of snow, and that’s the killer right there,” said Windham Public Works Director Doug Fortier. “It doesn’t give us time to remove snow through North Windham or South Windham village. The snow banks are so high, we’ve got to pick it with loaders and haul it away.”

“Having winter come all at once in three weeks’ time has been tough,” Fortier added.

According to Raymond Public Works Director Nathan White, the high snow banks have also resulted in a number of mailbox casualties.

“When the snowbanks get so high, they’re hard to see,” White said.

White said the persistent nature of the recent storms has proved tiring for the eight Raymond plow drivers.

“You’re in a truck for 14, 15 hours at a time and going round and round and round,” White said. “It wears you down. Everybody’s home on the weekends, and we’re out chasing it.”

According to White, one of the Raymond drivers stayed on the road for 34 consecutive hours during one of the recent storms.

“It’s fine if you only have one a week, but this stuff, back to back, it burns you out quick,” he said.

Apart from the tiring nature of the work, the plowing has proceeded more or less smoothly, with no major equipment breakdowns or issues, according to Standish Public Works Director Roger Mosley.

“We’ve got to do what we’ve got to do,” Mosley said.

Despite the strain on their crews, the directors say their winter budgets have not yet depleted to dangerous levels. According to White, his crew used considerably more sand and salt earlier in the season, when temperatures in the 30s led to wet, heavy snow that produced slushy, difficult driving conditions. Despite the large accumulations in recent weeks, the cold weather and dry snow have not posed such serious threats to tire traction.

“It’s been very dry and cold,” White said. “If you’re going to have snow, that’s the best snow to have. I don’t think any of the trucks went through a full load of sand during the last storm we just had.”

According to Windham’s Fortier, his crew has suffered a few minor mechanical breakdowns. So far, the budget has held up, as well. Last February, the department exhausted its sand and salt budget, forcing the town to fund the remainder of winter operations using an energy and weather emergency fund.

This year, Fortier said, he hopes the wild weather concludes before it gets to that point.

“It’s got to end sooner or later,” Fortier said. “I’m hoping sooner rather than later.”