A day after the U.S. Postal Service asked residents to shovel and salt to ensure safe mail delivery, the postal service had another message: clear a path.
“Keeping mailboxes and surrounding areas clear will prevent injuries and let our employees provide the best possible service, even in the worst conditions,” said the U.S. Postal Service's district manager for Philadelphia, Chu Falling Star.
The mail service released a graphic that exhibits what conditions mail carriers need to get to the mail box including having enough approach space and not having trash cans blocking their paths.
The postal service said the top concern is to safely deliver letters, prescriptions, checks and packages.
“We owe it to our families, our neighbors, and our letter carriers to make sure our properties are safe and accessible,” said Falling Star.
The postal service also asked that people clear sidewalks, porches, steps and walkways of snow and ice so that everyone can be safe after nearly 2 feet of snow fell in Philadelphia and more than 30 inches in parts of the Lehigh Valley.
The Postal Service offered these tips to ensure the mail gets where it needs to go:
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• Clear enough snow from curbside boxes to allow mail trucks to approach the box, deliver the mail and to drive away from the box without danger of the need for backing.
• Walkways should be cleared of snow and ice and allow enough traction to avoid slips, trips or falls.
• Steps should also be kept clear of ice and snow and in good repair so as not to cause injury to the letter carriers or others who visit the customer’s home.
• Overhangs should be clear and free of snow and ice to avoid injury.
If a mail carrier feels a situation is unsafe, they are instructed to hold the mail until later, said the postal service.
