Most significant winter weather of area’s season waits for March

While totals varied locally, the Charlottesville area got its most significant snowfall of the winter season Sunday night and Monday morning.
Area schools were closed. Government offices were closed or opened late; Charlottesville City Council canceled Monday night’s meeting.

By Monday evening, some school systems had called off classes for today as well, including Albemarle and Orange counties.
Power was knocked out for some 200,000 Dominion Virginia Power customers, mostly in Central Virginia. The Central Virginia Electric Cooperative reported about 2,000 outages, many of them in Albemarle and surrounding counties.
Virginia Department of Transportation crews were out in force to clear snow from roads.

By the time the storm left the area Monday, about 4 inches of snow had fallen at McCormick Observatory, according to Jerry Stenger, of the state climatology office at the University of Virginia.
Only about 3.8 inches of snow had fallen in Charlottesville before this weekend, Stenger said. Normal winter snowfall totals for the area average just less than 18 inches.
The area’s last big snowstorm hit in February of 2006, when 8.6 inches fell, Stenger said.
The most recent snowstorm dropped varying amounts throughout the area and state.
West of the city, the Crozet area got about 2 1/2 inches of snow, according to Stenger.
Reports from Fluvanna County put the snowfall there at between 7 1/2 to 9 1/2 inches, he said.
The Richmond area got 10 to 11 inches. Bedford reported 14 inches, according to Stenger.
“It was definitely a significant event in the state,” he said.

“All things considered,” he added, “we came out definitely on the low end” in Charlottesville.
Drivers either avoided going out or were more cautious, said Lt. Todd Hopwood of the Albemarle police.
“Crashes and whatnot weren’t really an issue for us,” he said. “I think people were prepared this time” for the weather.
“My concern,” he added, “would be tonight when it refreezes.”
VDOT spokesman Lou Hatter on Monday said the roads were in good shape, but cautioned drivers to be wary of black ice overnight and for the morning commute.

He said crews would be out overnight to monitor roads.
The forecast for the rest of the week calls for it to be clear and cold.
But by Saturday, it could be time to put away the snow boots and break out the shorts, as temperatures could reach the 60s.