Washington area due for 7-14 inches of snow plus sleet, freezing rain

The Washington area is expected to get between 7 and 14 inches of snow as well as ice as part of the major winter storm this weekend, the National Weather Service said Friday afternoon.

The snowstorm is expected to reach the area around 11 p.m. Saturday and extend until 4 a.m. Monday. The snowfall will be heaviest on Sunday, reaching rates of up to 1 to 2 inches an hour. The weather service expects ice to accumulate 0.1 to 0.2 inches.

The snow, which is moving northeast from the southwest, is expected to mix with sleet and freezing rain Sunday.

With a prolonged wind chill down into the teens or single digits starting Friday night and continuing into next week, significant icing is possible. 

The highest risk of icing will occur south of U.S. Route 50, the National Weather Service said, while the heaviest snowfall will be in the far northern and western portions of the Washington and Baltimore suburbs. 

There will also be the possibility of power outages. Dominion Energy told The Washington Times that it is “preparing for significant and widespread power outages from heavy ice and snow accumulation across Virginia and northeastern North Carolina,” and that power restoration could take days.

Exelon subsidiaries Pepco and Baltimore Gas and Electric, which supply the District and parts of Maryland, also said they are preparing for the storm and that “restoration priorities are public safety and other essential services such as 911 centers, hospitals and pumping stations.”

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and recently inaugurated Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger have issued states of emergency and, in the District’s case, an additional specialized snow emergency in anticipation of the storm. All three jurisdictions are recommending residents stay inside and avoid travel if possible.

D.C. residents are required to move their cars or other vehicles off the city’s snow emergency routes by noon Saturday, when the city’s snow emergency takes effect. The snow emergency will end on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.