As the first wet flakes of the area’s latest snow storm begin falling, Arlington County is warning that “efforts to clear neighborhood roads will be set back, possibly by days.”
“Snoverkill,” as the storm is now being called, will dump another 7-14 inches of sleet and snow on the region, according to the National Weather Service. But the real danger may be the wind.
Arlington’s Emergency Winter Shelter has been helping homeless individuals weather this year’s brutal winter storms. Now the folks running the shelter need our help. A-SPAN, the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network, announced on Facebook this morning that the shelter is running low on food, specifically cereal, snacks, bread and jelly.
If you have any to spare, call the shelter at 703-228-7395.
U.S. Park Police have released a series of beautiful photos showing the aftermath of this weekend’s snow storm. The photos were taken by Rescue Technician/Paramedic Sergeant Klebaner while on-board Park Police Helicopter Eagle 1 on Sunday. The chopper was making surveillance runs over some of the harder-to-get areas patrolled by the Park Police.
Among the photos are views of Reagan National Airport and Arlington National Cemetery.
The county has released a new video introducing us to the people behind the plows. Here’s what we learned:
Watch the video for yourself, after the jump.
Update at 8:05 PM – Arlington County government is closed tomorrow.
Update at 7:30 PM – The federal government is also closed tomorrow.
Update at 4:45 PM – National Weather Service predicting 10 to 20 inches of accumulation for DC. Officially, the Winter Storm Warning for Arlington calls for 6-12 inches of snow.
Update at 2:15 PM – CWG now warns of 5-10 inches of snow and dangerously high winds.
A team of 30 Arlington County “snow spotters” is canvassing the 376 miles of county-maintained roadways today, looking for areas in need of additional treatment.
The spotters are specially-trained employees of the Department of Environmental Services. Their observations are relayed back to county employees who map out the findings. The map then allows the snow removal crews to more quickly and easily identify problem spots.
The county says its snow removal crews are beginning to tackle neighborhood roads.
“Our crews are still working round-the-clock clearing massive amounts of snow from County-maintained roads,” Acting County Manager Barbara Donnellan said in a press release. “We are throwing everything we have into this effort, and have stabilized main roads and secondary roads throughout the County. Crews are beginning to work their way into the neighborhoods. We thank residents for their patience and understanding.”
Arlington County schools are closed Monday. The Arlington County government, including libraries and recreation centers, is also closed on Monday. Fines won’t be assessed for overdue books.
Thomas Jefferson Community Center, meanwhile, is open for use as a warming center.
At 6:00 tonight, 59,814 Dominion customers in Northern Virginia were still without power. Thousands of those outages appear to be in Arlington County, according to an outage map.
The entire Metro system is closing at 11:00 PM tonight.
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.
