OT: East Coast Deathstorm 2016

Submitted by gopoohgo on

NWS has issued it's first ever blizzard watch for the DC/Md/Va area.  

12" is now the minimum; NoVa, Montgomery County may hit 2-3'.

Repent!

PS Yes,  Northern New York and the UP get this all the time.  We have 10x the population with much less the snow removal resources in this area.  

Wolverine In Iowa

January 20th, 2016 at 12:15 PM ^

You east-coasters are getting what we just had here in Iowa, but it seems to be more serious for you.  In Southeast Iowa, it's been very cold (highs in single digits, lows below zero), and we got about three inches of snow yesterday/last night.  Nothing to cry about, obviously, but I believe the severity of the storm is going to increase as it goes east.

Blue2000

January 20th, 2016 at 12:21 PM ^

I worked for the Federal Government in 2010 when DC was hit by back-to-back blizzards.  We basically had three weeks off, and I lived in a townhouse with very little frontage to shovel.  My god it was the best.  

translator82

January 20th, 2016 at 1:35 PM ^

This also reminds me of Snowmageddon/Snowpocalypse 2010. I ended up working from home for a week because the street I lived on in Arlington, VA, was never cleaned. If at least a foot of snow falls (and probably more will fall), I pretty much expect the federal government to be shut down the entire week while the DC region digs out. I wouldn't be surprised if the state (MD/VA) and local governments probably burn through their snow cleaning budget after the first 24 hours of the storm. That all said I expect some amazing snowball fights at Dupont Circle on Saturday and Sunday.

Having lived in Washington for 9+ years until recently coming back to Michigan (on an interim basis), DC and the DMV area cannot handle snow, period. As someone stated before, they are wusses when it comes to winter weather, which is ridiculous since they're susceptible to snow in the winter time. 

Sllepy81

January 20th, 2016 at 12:24 PM ^

my wife has to work and drive 30 minutes to get downtown, she's not the best driver in snow at all. 5 more months and we move back to California.

drjaws

January 20th, 2016 at 12:24 PM ^

Winter is badass and snow is awesome.  How else do you go sledding and snowmobiling?  That said, I also like how it is just 3-4 months a year.

ChalmersE

January 20th, 2016 at 2:00 PM ^

For the record, there are still a lot of ifs to the forecast. If it goes North and East, then more sleet in DC, more snow in NYC and Boston. If it goes South, DC gets all snow, but less of it. I just checked the following sources and they're all over the place: -- Capital Weather Gang -- at least 8 inches, maybe twice that. -- Accuweather - 12-16 inches -- Wunderground -- at least 12, maybe twice that. -- weather.com -- 6-9 I'm rooting for weather.com, especially since I have to fly to Chicago for a funeral Sunday night or Monday and I never get plowed until just about everyone else has been plowed.

Capital Weather Gang has updated projections and now they and most others are predicting one to two feet maybe more. Here's a link that lists some of the latest predicitons: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2016/01/20/…

superstringer

January 20th, 2016 at 12:59 PM ^

As a resident of Nova for 25 years... if I had a buck for everytime they warned us of one of these deathstorms / snowmaggedons that ultimately didn't come to pass, I too could afford Ole Miss's annual recruiting class.

LSAClassOf2000

January 20th, 2016 at 1:36 PM ^

We've been lucky in southeastern Michigan so far this year - that particular system isn't supposed to even graze us and when we have gotten snow, it hasn't been much more than a dusting save for one storm where we got maybe two inches. Of course, now that I have said this, we're doomed a la last year's Super Bowl Sunday storm.

Naked Bootlegger

January 20th, 2016 at 1:43 PM ^

Born and raised in the U.P.   Also lived in the DC area for many years.   I love snow, but I honestly hated the Noreaster aftermath in metro DC.   Unlike most UP snows, the east coast snow was HEAVY.   It was a major pain to move around.   Heart attack level stuff.   Road clearing was also less than optimal.  I wont' envy you in the clean up phase.

Enjoy the storm, though, East Coasters.  Stay safe.   Hunker down, maybe even enjoy a little chillin' and Netflix to get you through the storm.  

 

 

translator82

January 20th, 2016 at 1:54 PM ^

For those interested in following, the Washington Post has a collection of snowfall maps from the DC media on what's being forecasted in terms of accumulating snow. The consensus with medium confidence seems to be 10-24 inches (for now).

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/capital-weather-gang/wp/2016/01/20/…

Also, I highly recommend following the Post's Capital Weather Gang blog if you're really into this storm and want to see how much snow gets dumped on DC. They'll probably live blog the weather forecasting models as they come in tonight (and tomorrow) and tweak their forecasts around that.

 

 

gwkrlghl

January 20th, 2016 at 1:56 PM ^

Twice as a kid we got 18" snowfalls overnight. I was out for 7 and 10 days of school respectively so brace yourself Delmarvians. My family's neighborhood didn't get plowed for about a week.

A foot of snow in VA/MD is like 5+ feet in Michigan. Completely crippling.

ama11

January 20th, 2016 at 2:12 PM ^

Here in NoVA it's a complete shit show when there's a small powdering. Cars will be abandoned in the middle of the road and it will look like the walking dead around here. Can't wait....



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canzior

January 20th, 2016 at 4:11 PM ^

because it's on the weekend.  And I had tickets to see Tom Papa at the DC Improv on Saturday, which has been rescheduled.  

But the grocery stores will be empty by tomorrow night and schools will be closed on Friday, for ALL of next week, because DMV does not do inclement weather well.  I expect to work from home until Wed.

 

I'm about 15 miles (2 hours with traffic) from Downtown DC.

Zarniwoop

January 20th, 2016 at 4:52 PM ^

I live in Hunt Valley, MD and we're being told andyhing from 1-3 feet.

I find 3 feet unlikely (I hope?) , but with 20-30 mph winds (gusts to 40), should be a fun weekend without power in a blizzard.

MichiganTeacher

January 20th, 2016 at 7:34 PM ^

Supposed to be heading into Boston with the team (Science Olympiad, not basketball) Friday day, returning Saturday evening. Superintendent is deciding tomorrow if we have to cancel the trip. Sigh.