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Fairfax County crews are preparing to clear more than 10.8 million square feet of pavement as an approaching weekend storm threatens libraries, shelters, government buildings and emergency facilities across the Northern Virginia suburb.

The operation follows three months of planning meetings held last summer by the county’s Department of Public Works and Environmental Services. With the storm nearing, officials have conducted as many as seven meetings a day to coordinate parking and put those plans into action.

Virginia’s Department of Transportation clears most roads, while the county focuses on pavement at the facilities it manages.

“This is the Super Bowl,” said Chase Suddith, an emergency management specialist working in stormwater management. “This is the most fun part of my job. It’s prepping for all of it, and then it’s executing.”

The county ranks sites by urgency. Police and fire stations, emergency services facilities and the judicial complex receive Priority 1 status, with crews kept nearby to handle emergencies. Health centers and similar locations are Priority 2, while libraries, community recreation centers and police and fire training academies fall into Priority 3.

More than 100 plows operate in 12-hour shifts during the response. From the Storm Command Center, Suddith monitors conditions while crews send real-time photographs and nonstop chat updates. Orange markers placed near curbs help workers identify pavement boundaries after snow covers the ground.

Crews treat parking lots and sidewalks with brine before accumulation begins. Plowing starts once an inch of snow has fallen, followed by detailed curb-to-curb clearing.

Following a nine-inch snowfall, the county would aim to finish curb-to-curb work at Priority 3 facilities about 72 hours after the snow ends, Suddith said.

Suddith expects to sleep roughly six hours a night during the storm response and is asking residents for patience, particularly because bitter cold could slow cleanup.

“It is going to be so cold afterward that it is going to be very challenging for us to get to what we normally expect,” he said. “More salt is not better. The salt is not going to be as effective once temperatures get below 20 degrees.”