National Weather Services revises snow totals upwards

Updated: 2:45 p.m. Conditions on I64 are deteriorating between Charlottesville and Crozet. The westbound side has been reduced to one lane of travel and conditions are reported as “slushy” with heavy traffic. Trees lining the roadway are starting to bend heavily and in some cases break as the snow accumulation mounts.

You can check interstate road conditions via VDOT’s system of traffic cameras.

Updated: 2:00 p.m. A regional shelter was opened at noon at Monticello High School in Albemarle County, staffed by social services, the Red Cross, Health Department and the Albemarle County Sheriff’s Department.

The National Weather Service has changed its winter storm warning, now saying 20 to 30 inches in accumulations are possible, and accumulations in excess of 30 inches are possible in locations at higher elevations. The heaviest snow in the area is expected to fall between sunset today and Saturday morning. Rain and wintry mix were also predicted to blend into the stormy weather on Friday evening, but weather experts were saying that the storm’s changing track should make it so that the area is spared from freezing rain.

Conditions began to worsen, especially on secondary and rural roads, midday Friday. An accident was reported on Interstate 64 eastbound at mile marker 131, between Keswick and Zion Crossroads, blocking the left lane. At close to 1 p.m., Dominion Virginia Power was reporting that up to 50 customers had experienced power outages south of Charlottesville, before the heaviest snow had begun to come down.

Updated: 11:00 a.m. As the snow began to fall Friday morning and the roads had yet to become impassable, dozens of Crozet residents rushed out to Crozet Hardware after hearing—primarily over Twitter—that the shop had received a last-minute truckload of snow shovels. By 10 a.m., more than 80 percent of the 230 shovels had been bought up.
A few doors down, the Crozet Mudhouse was doing brisk business as residents took advantage of the final few hours they could travel freely before hunkering down inside their homes. The coffee shop planned to stay open until 5 p.m. Friday and expected to re-open Saturday between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Updated: 9:25 a.m. Western Albemarle roads are now under a white dusting of snow. The U.S. 250 Bypass, Barracks Road and Georgetown Road are wet, to slightly slushy.

By Ted Strong and Bryan McKenzie

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Call it snowmaggedon, the snowpocalypse, a snowtastrophe or just a gigantic pain in the neck, a huge snowstorm is expected to blanket the region today and set a new Charlottesville record for snowy winters.

The storm has taken a track that brings it farther to the west than originally predicted, which should keep upper air temperatures low enough to make moisture fall as either sleet or snow rather than freezing rain.

“That’s good. We don’t want freezing rain,” said Jerry Stenger, of the University of Virginia’s climatology office. “I’m leaning toward 16 to 20 inches for Charlottesville and I think we might get 20 to 28 inches in other areas.”

With that amount of snow, authorities aren’t sure how long it will take to get roads passable again.

“We’ll go as hard as we can until things are in as good of shape as we can make them, and hopefully that won’t take days,” said Gary O’Connell, Charlottesville city manager.

Albemarle County spokeswoman Lee Catlin added that “people should be prepared to take care of themselves in their homes for everything they need for several days.”

A snowfall of 18.3 inches from this morning through late Saturday would set a new record for snowy winters, Stenger said. In records kept since 1881, the 1995-96 winter holds the record with 54.7 inches of snow during the season. Charlottesville’s Observatory Hill weather reporting station has received 36.5 inches so far this winter.

The average snowfall in a normal winter is 17.8 inches, Stenger said.

“We stand a really good chance of breaking the record [today],” Stenger said. “Plus, we have another storm expected on Tuesday that could bring us another 2 to 4 inches. And we have six more weeks of winter to set the record.”

Not everyone is as excited about setting the snow record, however. A series of storms has kept Virginia Department of Transportation snow removal teams at work on the weekends.

VDOT spokesman Lou Hatter said officials have brined main roads and readied plenty of equipment. They’re also hoping drivers won’t be out on the roads, packing the snow as it falls, he said. On Dec. 19, more than 20 inches of snow paralyzed traffic, leaving drivers stranded and cars abandoned. Those cars had to be removed before the roads could be cleared of snow.

“One of the things that helped us with last weekend’s storm was the fact that it came in on a Saturday,” Hatter said.

Officials are hoping residents will stay off the roads. In the city, authorities have posted some streets in the downtown with no parking signs and threatened to tow any cars left along posted routes. They are also asking residents to move cars off streets if possible. To help, they’re opening parking garages without charge.

At a Thursday news conference, Charlottesville Police Chief Timothy J. Longo was blunt.

“I think you get the message: Stay home,” he said.

Longo was one of more than a half-dozen officials who addressed the media ahead of the storm, asking people to stay off the roads.

Predictions of wind and heavy, wet snow could mean limited visibility and heavy drifting, as well, officials said.

“It will be a wet snow, so that means it will be heavy, and a potential loss of power,” said Marge Thomas, emergency management coordinator for Charlottesville, Albemarle County and UVa.

UVa, Piedmont Virginia Community College and local schools have canceled classes today to help reduce traffic.

“Consistent with the state declaration of emergency and the local declaration, the University of Virginia is canceling classes [today],” said Leonard W. Sandridge, executive vice president and chief operating officer of UVa.

Thomas said authorities will be reactivating their 979-INFO telephone line and are planning a potential shelter at Monticello High School, if one becomes necessary.

Longo said residents should try to clear sidewalks by Monday, and that by Tuesday or Wednesday, the city will be forced to think about enforcing the ordnance that requires residents to clear their walkways.

The city is responsible for clearing its own streets. County roads are cleared by the Virginia Department of Transportation. The dividing line is city limits, not by postal address.