Local residents in Ekeren, a district in the municipality of Antwerp, were surprised to see grit spreaders scatter de-icing salt onto the roads as it was a pleasant 20℃ outside. Bemused, many took to social media to voice their bewilderment.
“This Sunday morning, we saw our street full of road salt. Afterwards, we saw that salt was also being scattered around Ekeren-Donk,” local resident Philippe told Het Laatste Nieuws. “Sprinkling salt on a Sunday with 20℃. Isn’t the budget stretched nowadays?”
No snow or cold conditions are forecast this week for Antwerp, with temperatures remaining above 12 degrees for the rest of the week. According to the city of Antwerp, the salt spreading is part of a routine test of the municipality’s equipment.
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“It was an annual test before the standby period for the gritters, which starts on 1 November,” Dirk Delechambre, press officer for the city of Antwerp, told HLN.
“We test our equipment before use and we familiarise the new employees with the routes that are only driven in snow and sleet. We do indeed use road salt, although this is limited. Otherwise, the material cannot, of course, be tested,” the spokesperson concluded.
