Want to learn how to help your neighbors, co-workers or family in an emergency? If so, Arlington will be offering free emergency response training in March.
The training is part of the county’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program.
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(Updated at 9:25 a.m.) The northbound lanes of Sycamore Street are closed near I-66 and the East Falls Church Metro due to a vehicle collision, authorities said this morning.
Four people were injured in the three-vehicle collision.
Power Outage Update — There are more than 2,100 Dominion customers still without power in Arlington. That’s down from 16,700 at the height of the storm. Dominion is receiving some favorable comparisons to Pepco from the Washington Post. The Post notes that Dominion called in out of town power crews early, while Pepco did not.
Arlington Delegates Have Bills Killed in House — Bills that would increase Virginia’s cigarette tax, lower the mandatory retirement age for judges and impose a 5-cent tax on plastic bags have all been killed in the House of Delegates, after being proposed by Arlington-based lawmakers. [Sun Gazette]
With many side streets still snow-covered, with power still out in many areas, and with a refreeze predicted tonight, Arlington County Schools have decided to remain closed Friday.
It’s the third day in a row that schools have been affected by weather. Schools were closed Thursday and let out two hours early on Wednesday.
Tree limbs down the the score. Fallen utility lines coned off and marked with orange flags. Neighbors out with shovels and snow blowers. Kids, off from school, toting around plastic sleds. Stretches where power and traffic lights were out (including a busy section of Lee Highway between Kirkwood and Veitch). Police and firefighters responding to call after call after call.
In the aftermath of what caused so much frustration last night were more glimpses of the good that snow brings out in many of us. On side streets, many of those neighbors with shovels and snow blowers were out helping to clear the still un-plowed roads. Others could be seen clearing public sections of sidewalk so others didn’t have to walk in the street.
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Dominion has been out in force, working furiously to restore service to the thousands of customers who lost power last night. As of 3:45 p.m., the number without power in Arlington has been cut to 6,700 — down from 16,700 last night.
Most Dominion customers in Arlington should have their power restored at some point tonight. Still, Dominion says 10 percent of affected customers will have to wait until Friday night for the lights to come back on. And the company doesn’t expect to have power restored to all Northern Virginia customers until Saturday.
Moran told Alhurra, U.S. government-sponsored Arab TV network, that Democrats suffered in the 2010 elections because many Americans don’t want a black president.
“In this case a lot of people in this country, I believe, don’t want to be governed by an African American, particularly one who is inclusive, who is liberal, who wants to spend money on everyone and who wants to reach out to include everyone in our society,” Moran told an interviewer, as reported by the Washington Post.
Pizza Autentica has opened up at Crystal Drive and 23rd Street in Crystal City.
The location is the South Arlington counterpart to the rapidly-growing pizza chain’s Ballston restaurant, which opened in October.
With the federal government getting out only two hours early, the roadways were already jammed with traffic as heavy snow started to fall around 4:00 p.m.
“Instead of having a staggered rush hour, like you typically do, you had everybody leaving at the same time… right as the storm hit,” said state police spokeswoman Corinne Geller. “Roads started deteriorating rapidly, and the vehicles started sliding into one another.”
The road was closed for most of the morning as crews worked to clear snow, fallen trees and abandoned vehicles.
G.W. Parkway drivers spent up to 14 hours in their cars, from yesterday afternoon to early this morning, as fallen trees and collisions blocked the roadway in both directions.
Police have released surveillance images of the two masked men who robbed a BB&T bank in Rosslyn yesterday afternoon, just two hours before the snow started falling.
Police say a portion of the money was recovered thanks to a dye pack, which exploded as the men fled the scene.
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There are now just under 13,000 Dominion customers without power, a number that seems to keep falling.
Highways like I-66 and I-395, which were jammed last night with traffic, snow and disabled and crashed vehicles, are now clear. Most major local county roads are clear. But many side streets remain impassable, either because of snow or downed trees. A big test will come in the next hour, as federal employees — currently on a two-hour delay — start heading to work.