According to NBC4‘s Bob Ryan, we may experience some of the heaviest snowfall rates the Washington area has seen in generations tonight. Also in the mix: the rare and wonderfully contradictory thundersnow. Arlington Now will be back tomorrow with continuous Snowmageddon updates, including scanner reports and snow photos. Stay warm, everybody.
Metro is suspending above-ground Metrorail service at 11:00 PM.
Update at 8:10 PM – The Pentagon City Harris Teeter is closing within the hour. The Ballston store is planning to close at midnight. Both stores say it is unlikely they’ll open tomorrow.
Local Giant stores are, apparently, toughing out the storm. The South Glebe Road and the Virginia Square stores are both planning on closing at midnight and re-opening at 6:00 AM.
No more flights will be leaving from or arriving at Reagan National airport tonight, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority. All airlines have canceled flights for Saturday. MWAA says that crews will still be working to keep the runways clear tomorrow, so that flights could possibly resume on Sunday.
The Arlington Police Department is working extended, 12-hour shifts during the snow storm, which will increase the number of officers working at any given time. The department is also outfitting cruisers with tire chains and deploying four-wheel drive vehicles when possible, according to spokesperson Det. Crystal Nosal.
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Update at 4:30 PM – From Arlington Alert: “Arlington County Libraries, Schools, and Park activities are cancelled & facilities closed through Sunday”
Update at 1:15 PM – Fairfax County government is shutting down at 2:00 PM. Crystal Couture is canceled tonight. One place that’s opening for business instead of closing: Bakeshop is opening its doors at 2.
Okay, so we might be getting pretty worked up about Snowmageddon over here at arlnow.com. But it’s probably best not to sound gleeful — this is a dangerous storm, as the National Weather Service told WaPo’s Capital Weather Gang.
Truly, though, if someone is too excited about the snow it’s this guy.
The snow is sticking in Crystal City. Visibility is deteriorating as the snow picks up in intensity.
From Volunteer Arlington: The Arlington County Emergency Winter Shelter will be open continuously during this weekend’s storm. If you want to help out, you’re asked to call 703-228-7395 to find out what they need.
The first small, wet flakes have started falling across the area. So far, though, the snow is melting as soon as it hits the ground. That will likely be the story for awhile, since the temperature is hovering around 36 degrees.
Arlington County snow crews are scheduled to deploy at 4:00 this morning to try to get a jump on the storm. They’ve been given the futile-sounding task of pre-treating roads in advance of up to 26 inches of snow. They’ll have at least five hours to prepare for Snowmageddon — the first flakes are predicted to begin falling as early as 9:00 AM.
Here’s an etiquette guide for drivers who find themselves behind a snow plow.