It’s amazing how a snow storm that was greeted with such dread, and which prompted calls to “shelter in place,” could actually inspire a greater sense of community. Rather than sheltering in place, many people decided to have fun together outside.
Young and old went sledding on streets and in parks. People could be seen carrying snowboards, wakeboards and cross-country skis. Dog owners were out in force. Footballs were being thrown around.
Arlington County snow crews continue to work around the clock, focusing their efforts on main roads and emergency routes. The county says crews will not reach most neighborhood roads until Monday.
Here’s a list of safety guidelines from the county’s press release.
Arlington Police and Fire personnel have been busy all day responding to calls of trees down, wires down, trees and branches on wires, trees catching fire due to lines falling on them, wires and trees blocking roads, and combinations thereof. There have been at least 16 such calls in the past two hours.
In some cases first responders have been able to clear trees from the road by themselves. In cases where wires are down or branches are leaning on wires, all firefighters can do at this point is block off the area and add the incident to Dominion’s long to-do list.
Tow trucks and plows are responding to a mess just off I-395 North. Several vehicles, including an ambulance, are stuck on the ramp to eastbound King Street. The ambulance was responding to a call when it became stuck. The stranded vehicles are completely blocking the ramp.
Also on I-395, traffic cameras appear to show several cars stranded in the HOV lanes of I-395 South. A snow plow is now on the scene.
There was a festive atmosphere among those hardy or crazy enough to brave the elements in Courthouse and Clarendon last night. There were people making snow angels in the middle of Wilson Boulevard, people sledding down N. 13th Street, a mother and her young son making a snowman outside an office building at 1:00 AM, and, of course, lots of random shouting and general revelry in the streets.
A number of the popular bars that stayed open, including Whitlow’s and Four Courts, were packed with people. Those leaving the bars seemed especially susceptible to the allure of starting snowball fights.
ART bus service has been suspended for the day due to weather. Above-ground Metrorail and bus service also remains suspended.
The Crystal Couture show has been canceled for tonight. Classes have been canceled at Northern Virginia Community College. Pentagon City mall is closed and will reopen Sunday at 11:00 AM.
Arlington County is continuing its plea for drivers to stay off the roads. Police have been responding to reports of cars and trucks stranded in the road, blocking plows.
Crews are still out trying to keep main roads passable for emergency vehicles. Secondary roads will not be treated until well after the snow stops, except in instances where emergency vehicles need assistance getting to a call.
Arlington snow crews are making a valiant effort to keep Wilson and Clarendon Boulevards passable. Front end loaders are busy shoveling huge mounds of snow into lines of waiting dump trucks. As of 1:30 AM, four wheel drive vehicles were still able to navigate the main thoroughfares in Clarendon with relative ease.
Wind gusts in excess of 30 miles per hour are currently being recorded at Reagan National Airport. Along with the wind have come reports of downed trees and downed power lines. At least one tree was reported to have caught on fire after falling on live wires.
As of 3:00 AM, Dominion Power was reporting 44,849 outages throughout Northern Virginia. Several hundred of those outages were in Arlington.
VDOT completely shut down I-66 around 11:30 PM. As of right now it remains shut down and snow-covered.
I-395 also appears completely snow-covered. Of the VDOT cameras still in operation along I-395, no cars can be seen at this time.
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.
