Cleveland salt mine works year-round to keep Ohio roads safe

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Road safety across Ohio begins 1,800 feet below Lake Erie at Cleveland’s Cargill salt mine near Whiskey Island.

19 News made the journey under ground to Cleveland’s Cargill salt time.

Superintendent of production Andrew Staker describes the operation as a “mini-city” where about 250 employees produce the salt that clears our roads and sidewalks.

“We provide over half the salt used here in the state of Ohio. Our salt also goes all over the Great Lakes Region even Virginia,” said Staker.

Thousands of tons of salt pass through this belt, and 500-700 trucks are loaded with salt each day.

Staker said his team works nonstop.

“It’s a big misconception that the mine is only busy during the wintertime,” said Staker. “We prepare in the springtime, so it is full giddy up. We are making salt all year round.”

Just like everyone else, Staker and his time are feeling the effects of winter’s early arrival.

“We take a lot of it snowfall by snowfall, so as demand ramps up, our teams here will put in extra overtime days to be able to meet customer demand,” said Staker.

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