As Usual, First Snowstorm Leaves Things a Little Flaky

Hundreds of Fender Benders and Patchy School Closings, But Most Take Squall in Stride

By Steve Hendrix

Originally published at 4:02 p.m., January 27, 2009
Updated at 9:05 p.m., January 27, 2009

The first significant winter storm of the season turned the region into a hushed, two-toned landscape yesterday filled with giddy kids off from school, skidding drivers and officials nervously eyeing the back half of a weather system that threatened to bring a second morning of challenging weather.

By midnight, more than two inches had fallen across most of the area, with the heaviest accumulations in the counties south of the of Capital Beltway.

The storm came in two major waves, with snow falling steadily from 5 a.m. until about 2 p.m. Snow began falling again about 6:30 p.m. and continued through the evening. It was expected to turn to freezing rain.

Given the repeated snowfalls, traffic officials were pleased that daytime commutes proved relatively uneventful. Officers responded to hundreds of slip-and-slide fender benders on secondary roads, but no major accidents that police blamed on the weather.

"It was actually pretty good," said Virginia Department of Transportation spokesman Mike Salmon of the day's traffic. He credited the early deployment of salt trucks for the relatively safe conditions on major roads. The department ran more than 1,000 salt and sand trucks during the day and planned to operate all night, Salmon said, and would be concentrating on commuter parking lots along interstates 95 and 66 in advance of this morning's rush. "We'll be ready."

With the forecast calling for a night of freezing rain to follow the snow, school officials said they would evaluate road conditions and decide before dawn whether to call off classes for a second day. A winter storm warning was in effect until noon today in Montgomery, Loudoun, Howard and Fauquier counties, and there is a winter weather advisory in the rest of the region. Temperatures were expected to climb above freezing soon after sunrise.

The arrival of snow — long-awaited by students, dreaded by scrambling parents and uncertain drivers — was the first noteworthy snowfall in more than a year. By midmorning, hundreds of snow-starved residents had pulled sleds and snow boots from closet and headed into the chill.

"It just seems like we've been a couple of years without one of these," said Brooks Boliek, whose children were among more than 30 sledders on a hill behind Takoma Park Middle School. "I welcome it. It's a relief to get them outside instead of just killing aliens on the TV screen."

If conditions weren't perfect — "Too wet for snowmen," declared Aaralyn Mills of Silver Spring — they still created spectacular snowscapes across the region. Along the banks of Sligo Creek, Mills marveled at towering leafless oaks iced in white and dripping sparkles at every breeze.

"It's just beautiful," said Mills, who was pushing her 10-month-old daughter in a blanket-draped stroller as her two nephews practiced snow angels and threw handfuls of snow at each other.

Not everyone welcomed the return of winter white.

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Heavy Snowfall in Loudoun

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The snowy area surrounding the Old Leesburg Courthouse in Leesburg as photographed at mid day on Jan. 27. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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Slippery sidewalks are treated in downtown historic Leesburg along King Street on Jan. 27. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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Matt Cromwell of Leesburg walk his retrievers, Lucy and Lilly, near the corner of Market and Kings Streets in downtown historic Leesburg on Jan. 27. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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A fence surrounding Morven Park just off Old Waterford Road in Leesburg is covered in snow the morning of Jan. 27. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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On Claiborne Parkway in Ashburn, David Stewart, a VDOT Contractor, cleans his salt spreader on the back of his truck early this morning. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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David Stewart, a VDOT Contractor, cleans his salt spreader on the back of his truck in Ashburn early Tuesday morning. Stewart left his home in Culpepper to arrive at VDOT in Ashburn at 9 p.m. last night. His job is to cover the roads in the Ashburn area. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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In Ashburn Village, William Lake cleans the snow off his car before he begins his early morning work commute to Manassas. He lives just off Choptank Terrace in Ashburn. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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William Lake, who lives off of Choptank Terrace in Ashburn, cleans the snow off his car during Loudoun's heaviest snowfall so far this winter season. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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Eary morning traffic heads west at the intersection of Rout 7 and Battlefield Parkway just outside Leesburg on Jan. 27. (Tracy A. Woodward)

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A Nandina shrub in Ashburn was covered in snow during a heavy Loudoun snowfall on Jan. 27. (Erica Garman)

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Fairfax County police tallied about 300 accidents before noon, and Virginia State Police said they were investigating minor crashes at a clip of about 10 an hour on area interstates, spokeswoman Corinne Geller said.

By noon, Charles County seemed to lead the region with 105 weather-related traffic calls, from minor collisions to motorists stuck in snow.

"To say we're busy would be an understatement," said Charles County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Diane Richardson.

Sheriff's deputies in Calvert and St. Mary's counties responded to more than 60 weather-related traffic incidents, including two school bus crashes in St. Mary's, authorities said. No one was seriously injured in either of those crashes, and kids were on the bus in just one of them, said Cindy Allen, a spokeswoman for the St. Mary's County sheriff's office.

Calvert Sheriff Mike Evans said the unusually high number of crashes — almost 50, he estimated — was due in part to the fact that the rural region had not seen significant snow all year. "The first one seems always to be the worst," he said.

Many area schools closed yesterday before the first buses rolled, including those in Montgomery, Howard and Loudoun counties. Other jurisdictions, including Prince George's, St. Mary's and Calvert counties, tried to hold classes but ended up sending students home early.

"We try to make the best decisions we can with the information we have at the time," said J. Bradley Clements, chief operating officer for St. Mary's schools.

Clements said when he and other officials made the decision about 4:30 a.m. to hold school, St. Mary's was not even included in the weather advisory and was only expected to receive a half-inch.

The return of winter weather immediately sparked some of the region's most venerable snow-day traditions, residents reported, from raiding area stores for milk and bread to some parents complaining about area schools' habit of canceling school at the first sign of a flake.

Another winter tradition also was on display: The crowing by snow veterans from colder parts of the country that folks don't panic like this where they come from.

"We got bigger snows than this in July," said Evan Hirsche, a Massachusetts native who made his usual nine-mile bicycle commute from Chevy Chase to his office in downtown Washington. "It was lovely. Anytime we get snow, it's a great event."

Staff writers Tom Jackman, Daniel de Vise, Jenna Johnson, Nelson Hernandez, Theresa Vargas and Matt Zapotosky contributed to this report.

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