Most schools across the Watertown region made the decision to close late Thursday, as did Fort Drum.

By Friday morning, the snow on the roadways made it clear those were good decisions.

“We do our thing and Mother Nature gets to play along too. She’s a worth adversary when it comes to lake-effect snow," New York State Department of Transportation Public Information Officer Mike Flick said.

Having that many people at home and off the roads was not only good for their safety, but it allowed plows to get an early start on cleaning up the roads.

“Fewer people on the roads is a better thing in weather like this. For those people who don’t need to travel, don’t," Flick recommended.

However, no matter the storm, there will always be people who do go out and some who absolutely need to. But because the area is close to the military, people who come and go from all over, that means there will always be people on the streets who have never driven in snow before. That is a concern.

“Well, there are the new folks, but there’s also the folks who forget that it snows up here. We all fall in that category where we are used to summertime driving. You hop in your car, fire it up and away you go, no problems. It’s different now," Flick added.

So as we get set to welcome two feet or more of snow by Sunday, it’s also fair to say this is nothing the North Country hasn’t seen before. However, what’s happening in Buffalo, could very well be much worse. The state, and rightfully so, has its focus out west, but we’re told it’s also keeping its eyes up north and the North Country will also have everything it needs to keep up with this snow.

“We have what we need here by and large. Those assessments are made on a daily, hourly, basis. Our team has been in here all night. I believe they were in here the night before. We’re on 24-hour status here in the State Office Building as well, monitoring the storm," Flick said.

This storm is set to end by Sunday afternoon, but the DOT said it could be another 24 hours or so until all of the back and side roads here in the North Country are able to be fully cleaned. It just asks drivers to be patient and focus on what’s happening in front of them.

While the DOT says it does have enough staff to handle this storm, it is still looking to hire plow drivers and other positions.

You can apply on the DOT website or at a facility.