Virginia Governor Declares State of Emergency as Snow and Ice Hit Mid-Atlantic Region

A winter storm was moving into the mid-Atlantic region on Tuesday, with predictions of substantial snow and ice accumulations prompting alerts about possible power outages.

The National Weather Service warned that travel could become hazardous on Tuesday and continue through early Wednesday across large parts of Virginia and West Virginia.

On Monday, Virginia Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency in anticipation of the storm, enabling state agencies to support local authorities. As a result, schools and government facilities throughout Virginia closed on Tuesday.

The most significant snowfall, expected to reach up to 10 inches, was predicted for areas in northern and central Virginia as well as eastern West Virginia. Ice accumulation forecasts varied from a light glaze in Kentucky and West Virginia to as much as half an inch in the Roanoke Valley in southwestern Virginia, according to the weather service. Heavy ice accumulation could lead to power outages and damage to trees.

“Did you think winter was done? Think again!” commented the weather service’s Blacksburg office in a post shared on the social media site X.

Appalachian Power, which provides service to approximately 1 million customers in West Virginia, Virginia, and Tennessee, announced that it had requested the help of 700 additional workers from neighboring utility companies to address any issues by Tuesday morning.

In northern Virginia, the National Park Service shut down part of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, a narrow roadway that trails through woodlands along the Potomac River. This parkway links several small national parks and has historically faced issues during winter storms with abandoned vehicles causing a slalom route for snowplows and other drivers.

Winter storm warnings were in effect from Kentucky to southern New Jersey, along with a flood watch issued for large areas of Kentucky, Tennessee, southwestern Virginia, and northern Georgia. As temperatures were expected to rise, the mix of snow and ice was predicted to turn entirely into rain by Wednesday afternoon.

Additionally, another storm system is anticipated to bring heavy snowfall from Kansas and Missouri to the Great Lakes region on Wednesday, according to the weather service.

A dangerous cold front was also forecasted on Tuesday, stemming from an Arctic air mass that extends from Portland, Oregon, to the Great Lakes.

In Butte, Montana, the temperature was expected to plummet to minus 33 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 36 degrees Celsius) on Tuesday morning. The local homeless advocates, noting that in the past two winters at least five individuals died from cold exposure, planned to distribute sleeping bags, jackets, mittens, and other cold-weather supplies to those in need, as stated by Brayton Erickson, the executive director of the Butte Rescue Mission. “When it gets this cold, we kind of pull out all the stops,” he remarked. “Having all those resources available literally can save their life or keep them from frostbite.”

By John Raby