Shorewood 1 — Snow 0

The blizzard was just as bad as it was billed to be, but Shorewood still beat it.

Public works crews plowed around the clock, keeping the village's roads clear, and police and fire personnel saved those stranded, including Morris paramedics who were marooned on Route 52 when their ambulance got stuck.

"Our snowplow drivers did a great job," said Village Administrator Kurt Carroll.

So did Shorewood's residents, Carroll said, as nearly all got their vehicles off the streets, as village law dictates when the snowfall exceeds two inches. And Shorewood got a lot more than two inches, with the area depth at close to a foot and a half.

While the roads were still treacherous enough overnight Tuesday to strand about a dozen drivers and lead some to walk away from their cars, there were few crashes, said Police Chief Robert Puleo.

"We fared very well," Puleo said. "Even accident-wise, we fared very well."

ComEd crews also were hard at work and well on their way to turning the lights back on at the homes of customers left without electricity during the storm. As the snow removal progressed, electric company crews were able to travel with greater ease and speed.

The ones who most benefited from the storm were the students of the Troy school district, who got two full days off from classes.

While the youth of Shorewood got an abbreviated school week, Troy Township Fire Chief Steve Engledow warned them to stay safe while they were playing in the snow. He particularly cautioned against burrowing into deep snow piles and stressed the importance of keeping an eye out for snowplows.

Engledow spent the Tuesday night at the police station to be on hand in case of any dire emergencies, of which, fortunately, there were none.

But if there had been a crisis, Engledow said his department had contingency plans in place and had worked out arrangements with the police and public works departments.

"It's good to have the resources at your fingertips," Engledow said.