A winter storm brought heavy snow and powerful winds to much of the Southeast and the mid-Atlantic on Monday, forcing federal authorities and schools to shut down, downed planes and cut power to thousands.
Forecasters expected the first snowstorm of the season in the region of 4-8 inches of snow and wind speeds of 25 miles per hour on Thursday.
Washington City Mayor Muriel Bowser issued a snow emergency as public transit in and around the city of 700.000 people had a cut journey times and delays were expected due to the harsh conditions.
“This is not a very typical setup for us, especially this time of year for us,” said Austin Mansfield, weatherman for the Virginia Weather Service.
“When we are talking highly populated areas, increasing accumulation of snow becomes problematic.” Poor weather forced federal authorities in Washington to shut down, while dozens of schools in the area cancelled or delayed school starts.
The heavy snow brought on roads and power lines, brought treacherous travel conditions, and left homes and businesses without power.
‘I was just in the carpool lane at Wake Forest High school and witnessed a tree fall on a car. Huge pop & sparks from the power line above us,’ t make things worse.
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