Long Island officials are defending themselves after Thursday's surprise snowstorm caused a long commute.

Michael Martino, a spokesman for Nassau County Executive Laura Curran told Newsday that they were not unprepared for the storm, but that Mother Nature "threw us a curveball."

He says the Nassau Department of Public Works did pre-treat county roads Thursday afternoon. He went on to say that plows were unable to effectively remove snow due to the congested rush hour.

Suffolk Department of Public Works says crews were immediately deployed to clear county roads once the snow started to fall.

The State Department of Transportation also says nearly 250 plows were dispatched across state roads on Long Island.