Snow still impedes mail delivery – Postmaster urges use of temporary mailboxes

By Elna Seabrooks
Staff Writer
    HOULTON — Although weather has moderated, snow is still impeding timely delivery of mail. That’s why Postmaster Fred Workman is strongly urging residents to use temporary mailboxes.
EASY FIX — Houlton Postmaster Fred Workman shows how a temporary mailbox can be moved to accommodate timely mail delivery. The one pictured is on display in the lobby of the post office on Court Street in Houlton.
Workman says rural areas served by carriers in trucks are the worst hit by weather conditions because plows knock down mailboxes. Snow banks, in addition to snow buildup on the roads, make it difficult to reach the mailboxes left standing and could lead to suspension of mail delivery.
    One way to avoid interruption is a temporary mailbox. “I have a temp mailbox. If the plow knocks it over, I just pick it back up. If I know the snowstorm’s coming, I pull it back from the road. And, once the snow is gone, then I put it back,” says the postmaster.
    And, he adds, it can be almost anything from a wheelbarrow to a pickle barrel or a simple sand-filled bucket with a mailbox on a post like the one on display in the lobby of the post office. “To me, that’s the easiest fix,” he says.
    Postal regulations require that mailboxes be between 42 and 46 inches high, says Workman. However, he suggests customers go beyond the requirements to 48 inches in height because of northern Maine’s unique weather conditions. Snow and ice buildup on the road effectively “lowers” the mailboxes and “raises” the mail trucks so that the minimum height is not achieved. Workman also says many rural customers are at the low end of the requirements which exacerbates the situation. Add to that the sometimes massive banking of snow on the road and delivery of mail becomes even more difficult.
    If customers raise their boxes to a minimum of 48 inches high, he says, that should eliminate any problem with the snow and ice buildup. Mail carriers, he says, should be able to reach out the window to drop mail and not have to exit their vehicles to deliver the mail in rural areas. In the city, mail carriers on foot should have a clear path to the mailbox. He does add that Houlton residents are doing a very good job in cooperating with postal regulations.
    If a mailbox is knocked down and the carrier cannot deliver mail for 10 days, Workman says it will be returned to the sender as undeliverable as addressed. Workman says he has personally visited several residents to explain the various issues involved which also include safety and the impact on the work schedule. When the warm weather finally arrives, Workman suggests that residents raise any mailbox currently at the lower end of the postal requirements and hit that 48 inch height.