Whetstone Sanitation

About Whetstone Sanitation

The Whetstone River cuts past Milbank on its way toward Big Stone Lake, and the cold off that lake country has a way of arriving ahead of the forecast, turning a light dusting into an overnight freeze along the low ground near the water. This crew keeps its routes close to that river valley, clearing driveways and lanes where the cold seems to hang a little heavier and linger a little longer than it does up on the flats. A route worked the same way each storm becomes second nature, which culvert crossing ices first, which yard catches the wind funneling off the lake. Trucks idle low along the riverbank while the crew works, breath visible, blades scraping down to gravel one driveway at a time. By the time Big Stone Lake is fully iced over for the season, this crew already knows every lane along its shore by heart.