Update at 10:00 p.m. — There are now more than 13,400 Dominion customers without power in Arlington.
Heavy, wet snow is continuing to fall in the area, knocking down trees and power lines and grinding traffic to a halt.
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Weather
Cars were getting stuck on the snowy, hilly section of the Pike near Washington Boulevard. Traffic was backed up before the hill as a result. On Washington Boulevard, traffic was at a standstill.
Residents were streaming up the sidewalks of the Pike from the Pentagon City area. Some were stopping to help push stranded cars up the street. Others were talking on their phones, trying to provide directions to loved ones who were stuck in traffic.
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Update at 7:00 p.m. — Downed power lines and falling tree limbs are being reported throughout the area. Dominion is reporting more than 1,200 customers without power in Arlington. Dominion spokeswoman Le-Ha Anderson tells WUSA 9 that it may take more time than usual to restore power due to gridlock on local streets and highways.
Update at 6:10 p.m. — Traffic is at a dead stop on westbound I-66 from the District to Spout Run.
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Highways leading out of the District of Columbia are thick with traffic as a steady rain starts to change over to a slippery mix of sleet and snow.
Southbound I-395 and westbound I-66 are both jammed.
Employees from the county’s Water Sewer Streets Bureau will be divided up into two teams that will work 12-hour, round-the-clock shifts starting tomorrow before the storm’s arrival.
Snow-clearing equipment will be readied tomorrow morning, with crews getting on the road by mid-afternoon, according to Department of Environmental Services spokeswoman Myllisa Kennedy.
A winter storm watch has been issued for Arlington (and the rest of the Washington region) tomorrow.
Forecasters are calling for snow to start falling tomorrow afternoon, with accumulations of five or more inches possible.
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(Updated at 11:30 p.m.) Get ready for the dreaded wintry mix and a challenging morning commute.
The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory, in effect from 10:00 tonight to 9:00 tomorrow morning. Forecasters are predicting that snow and sleet, beginning around dinner time, will switch over to freezing rain overnight, leaving roads slick and the ground covered with as much as an inch of wet snow.
Believe it or not, there’s still a remnant of the 2 to 3 inches of snow we got on Dec. 16 hanging around. This dirty snow pile can be found in the median on George Mason Drive near Virginia Hospital Center.
The pile may soon grow a bit. Forecasters are calling for a dusting to an inch of snow overnight.
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Update at 2:00 p.m. — The winter storm warning has been dropped. Arlington is now expected to just get a dusting of snow.
Update at 3:00 a.m. — It now appears that the storm will be smaller than anticipated locally.
Now, instead of a blast of snow on Tuesday, as once predicted, snow lovers are being told to wait until Christmas.
Surely, snow fans must be getting a bit frustrated. If there’s one time of year when it would be nice to have some more white stuff on the ground, it’s the holiday season.
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Earlier we reported that North Veitch Street had been shut down near Lee Highway due to slippery conditions on a hill that led to a minor accident.
Now we’re hearing of big problems on at least three other hilly roads.
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Enjoy it while it lasts. The snow is expected to end around 7:00 tonight.
Two inches of accumulation is expected.