Nevada Department of Transportation has been prepping since August to be ready for winter, which arriving this week.

NDOT begins annual winter preparations by readying more than 80 snowplows and other pieces of snow and ice equipment.

Approximately 40,000 cubic yards of salt and sand has been stockpiled in the area, ready to be spread for increased traction and safety. The sand is combined with salt and wetted with brine to create more dense sand that keeps roads ice-free at lower temperatures and will not as easily bounce off roadway surfaces. NDOT sand trucks calibrate the amount of salt and sand, spreading the mixture on roadways with extreme precision and efficiency.

The brine is a water solution of 23 percent salt that is produce in-house.

During major winter storms, crews work in 12-hour shifts, rotating personnel to provide 24 hour-a-day snow removal.

Officials report more than 2,000 crashes occur statewide every year due to unsafe driving in snow, ice and other wet conditions, such as driving too fast for conditions, following too closely, or failing to maintain a lane and overcorrecting.