I-95 traffic news - Highway shut down as lawmakers stranded in DC and a second snowstorm on the way
Updates on the wild weather wreaking havoc in the US capital
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Your support makes all the difference.Heavy snow has wrought havoc on the Washington, DC area, leaving hundreds of drivers stranded on a major roadway in Virginia.
A massive pile-up clogged a 50-mile stretch of Interstate 95 overnight after a crash involving six tractor-trailers on Monday afternoon.
The collision caused no injuries but brought traffic to a standstill along the US East Coast’s main north-south highway, and it became impossible to move as the snow accumulated. Hours passed with hundreds of motorists posting increasingly desperate messages on social media about running out of fuel, food, and water.
Authorities were still struggling to reach the stranded motorists on Tuesday morning amid treacherous freezing road conditions throughout the region.
Some drivers have now been stranded for 24 hours and it is unclear when the roadway will reopen.
Meanwhile, the snow caused headaches in the nation’s capital, briefly trapping President Joe Biden inside Air Force One on Monday and forcing many federal offices to shut.
DC mayor asks residents to help neighbours shovel snow
Mayor Muriel Bowser has asked for volunteers to help their neighbours shovel snow. The city is even handing out shovels to those that need them.
Smithsonian Museums begin to reopen as DC gets back on its feet
In line with federal government offices, all Smithsonian museums in the DC area will open three hours late, with the National Gallery of Art saying it would open at noon.
The Smithsonian Zoo and the National Building Museum will remain closed.
DC residents asked to stay off roads
Washington, DC residents have been asked to stay off the streets as much as possible to allow clean up crews to tackle damage and ice on residential streets.
City administrator notes Covid testing will continue
PCR tests will still go ahead at Fire Stations and Thrive DC this afternoon, and Rapid Test are available for pick-up at libraries.
Hundreds of thousands still without power
As of 11.30am 260,372 utility customers in Virginia and 26,000 in Maryland are still without power according to the latest figures from PowerOutage.us.
Further south, the storm has also caused service disruptions in North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia.
An update from Tim Kaine
Senator Tim Kaine is still in his car on I-95 but stresses that he is not in serious trouble.
He has particular praise for a family from Connecticut who were driving back from Florida when they got stuck. They handed out oranges to stranded motorists in the middle of the night.
More snow on Thursday night
More snow is forecast for the greater Washington area at the end of the week after Monday’s storm caused havoc with transportation in the region.
“While the event is still a couple of days away, current forecast data shows a quick moving area of low pressure will bring accumulating snow to our region,” reports CBS WUSA 9 in Washington, DC. “The entire DMV will have to watch for sticking snow overnight Thursday into early Friday morning.”
Temperatures will rise to above freezing, to near 40F (4.5C), on Thursday afternoon. During the evening, moisture will move in ahead of low pressure.
This could kickstart a weather event as light rain or a wintry mix of rain and snow and then sleet that will change over to snow for most of the night.
NBC Storm Team4‘s Chief Meteorologist Doug Kammerer describes this as an “impactful event” Thursday night into Friday morning — but it won’t bring as much accumulation as Monday’s storm.
ABC 7 StormWatch notes: “If this occurs, the snowfall will still be on the ground in many spots, giving a frozen foundation for more accumulation.”
According to the National Weather Service, the system is “capable of producing a more widespread 1-3 inch or 2-4 inch event.”
This will lead to more hazardous travel conditions overnight on Thursday through the Friday morning commute for the entire metropolitan region.
Once the system moves out of the region it will give way to a dry and sunny Friday afternoon.
VDOT warns of continuing congestion
Virginia Department of Transportation warns about congestion along all major routes while I-95 is closed and traffic rerouted.
Some drivers now stuck for 24 hours
Some drivers caught up in the unprecedented gridlock on I-95 have been trapped for 24 hours as state officials and agencies continue to try and clear exits of snow, ice, and debris to unjam the interstate.
The standstill began on Monday as temperatures dropped quickly, freezing recently fallen rain. Heavy snowfall followed across a large swathe of the US Southeast and mid-Atlantic regions.
Icy roads caused multiple crashes and spin-outs, according to local media, with tractor-trailers jackknifing across I-95 leading to the complete paralysis of the highway as temperatures dropped further below freezing overnight.
Senator Tim Kaine, who set out from Richmond, Virginia for DC at 1pm on Monday, told NBC: “This has been a miserable experience, but at some point, I kind of made the switch to a miserable travel experience to a survival project.”
The fast-moving storm also forced the closure of federal offices and schools, grounded airplanes, and knocked out electrical power for thousands of residents.
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