A5
THE ASTORIAN • SATuRdAy, JANuARy 18, 2020
By HAILEY HOFFMAN
The Astorian
Mail, delivered
7:15 A.M.
Every day the U.S. Postal Service delivers 187.8 million pieces of mail throughout the
United States. Thousands of those letters and packages pass through the post office in
Astoria and are hand sorted and put on one of 15 routes for the letter carrier to hand
deliver. To ensure that mail arrives on time and to the right place, the post office has a
series of strict protocols to keep workers organized and on time.
Mail trucks sit parked outside the post office ready to hit the streets to bring residents of Astoria their letters and packages.
Photos by Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian
7:21 A.M.
8:03 A.M.
LEFT: Sandra McNaught organizes pieces of mail into different boxes based on which of the routes it will travel on. After working at the post office for almost three years, McNaught can
match almost any street in Astoria with its postal route off the top of her head. RIGHT: Postmaster Philip Padfield, left, briefs the letter carriers before they head out onto the streets of
Astoria and surrounding areas. They discussed weather, safety and the day ahead.
8:25 A.M.
8:49 A.M.
LEFT: Post office workers sort packages, mostly from Amazon, into different bins based on route in the back of the office. In the last six years, there has been a significant influx of boxes from
Amazon that has changed some of the basic organization and operations of the office. On that morning, the staff received over 700 boxes from Amazon alone. RIGHT: Letter carrier Amanda
Kirby sorts 1,037 pieces of mail into different address cubbies. Kirby’s route, Route 11, takes her through Coast Guard housing and across the South Slope of Astoria to 788 different houses.
9:49 A.M.
9:24 A.M.
ABOVE: Amanda Kirby walks down the
steps of a house on Lexington Avenue
shortly after beginning her delivery
route. According to her Samsung watch,
Kirby walks around 11 miles every day
from house to house. LEFT: Amanda Kirby
tosses a box into her mail truck at the
loading dock. Kirby said she has delivered
everything from lawnmowers to cremated
remains.