Snow Shuts Down Nation's Capital
No postal service, no Amtrak service, and thousands are without power during a record-breaking storm for the region.
Amtrak has halted train movements today that were scheduled through Washington, D.C., and Virginia because of "severe winter weather conditions, which has resulted in downed trees and power lines on portions of tracks in Virginia, the Carolinas and across the mid-Atlantic region."
With snow continuing to fall and 24 to 30 inches already on the ground in some cities, The Washington Post's Breaking News blog reports heavy snow caused the collapse of the roof of a hangar at Dulles Airport where private planes are housed, requiring a fire department rescue of one person who had been trapped inside. The airport halted operations around 10 a.m. EST today. The U.S. Postal Service has suspended operations in the region today.
Maryland State Police deployed 70 troopers who ordinarily do not work on road patrol duty in response to the storm, and the agency announced Saturday morning that commanders of all 22 Maryland State Police barracks reported responding to disabled vehicles whose drivers "are not equipped to travel in this type of extreme weather and are becoming stuck in the snow. Troopers are reporting that most drivers of the disabled vehicles have no important or emergency purpose for being on the highway. Disabled vehicles are causing significant problems for snow removal crews and are inhibiting the emergency response of police and fire personnel," according to the MSP update.