Now it’s about the cleanup.
After a historic storm dumped more than 25 inches of snow on the Bethesda area, plow crews are continuing efforts to clear it Monday from local roads.
Montgomery County officials warned Sunday night that it may take multiple days for crews to plow the 4,000 miles of neighborhood roads in the county.
“We still have a long ways to go until we can declare victory,” County Executive Ike Leggett said during a press conference Sunday night. He explained that county crews and hundreds of contractors were working aggressively to clear primary county roads and then will move to neighborhood streets. The neighborhood roads, he said, will take time to clear. “We will at least clear a pathway,” Leggett said.
On Monday morning, Montgomery County’s Department of Highway Services tweeted that it had begun plowing operations on neighborhood roads—most of which haven’t been touched since snow started falling Friday afternoon.
“We have to haul away most of the snow from our neighborhood streets,” Al Roshdieh, the county’s transportation director, said Sunday night. “I would ask for your patience, we will get to you soon.”
A snow emergency remains in effect in the county, which means no parking is allowed on roads marked as snow emergency routes.
"We basically have the county divided into 280 snow routes and each of them are being worked. We're going to get to people as quick as we can," Patrick Lacefield, a spokesman for the county said Monday morning. "It's not like a cable appointment, where we can say our guy will be there between 10 and 2—it depends on the cirucmstances."
He said about 700 plow trucks are clearing snow on county roads.
The snowstorm began Friday afternoon and the snow didn’t stop until early Sunday morning. Heavy winds accompanied the storm, particularly Saturday afternoon, but Montgomery County emergency officials didn’t report any deaths as a result of the storm. Residents mostly heeded officials’ calls to stay off the roads so plows could work, although there were some reports of joyriding individuals in SUVs getting stuck on snow-covered roads. The snowfall was so significant the state closed I-70 and I-270 Saturday night until Sunday morning to give crews more space to work.
A certified spotter for the National Weather Service measured 27 inches of snow in North Bethesda. Another spotter recorded 30 inches in Garrett Park, while 38 inches was measured in Potomac. Those measurements would make the blizzard the biggest snowstorm to strike the area.
Despite record snowfalls and wind gusts recorded as high as 40 mph, no significant power outages in the area were reported by Pepco. Less than 1,000 outages were reported in the county—about half happened in Takoma Park, where a fallen tree took down a power line. As of Monday morning, the utility’s outage map didn’t show any outages in the county.
Jeff Burton, the deputy director of Bethesda Urban Partnership (BUP), said Monday conditions were slowly improving in downtown Bethesda.
“It’s nothing like I’ve seen in the 20 years I’ve been here, including the ’96 blizzard,” Burton said.
He said the streets downtown are mostly clear, but still slippery and icy. However, most of the sidewalks remain covered with snow.
“Property and business owners are responsible for removing the snow from the sidewalks,” Burton said. “It’s going to be a slow dig-out process.”
County law requires property owners to remove snow from their sidewalks within 24 hours of the snowfall stopping or face the possibility of a $50 fine. However, it’s unlikely property owners will be fined immediately given the significance of the storm. In a press statement Sunday, the county said, “Any enforcement for now of sidewalk snow removal will be reasonable and follow common sense.”
Burton added that staff members from BUP have been working from “dawn ‘til dusk” to clear curb cuts, crosswalks and handicap ramps and plan to continue Monday. He said the county plans to begin hauling snow out of downtown during the night, as it has in the past.
Many businesses that were closed Saturday and Sunday are planning to reopen Monday. Westfield announced it would reopen its Bethesda and Wheaton malls Monday at 10 a.m. Whole Foods reopened Monday its locations in Silver Spring, Bethesda and Gaithersburg’s Kentlands. Safeway is open and offering a 5 percent discount at its area stores. Bethesda restaurants such as PassionFish, Silver and Bold Bite announced they were reopening.
Some restaurants, such as Olazzo and Tommy Joe’s in Bethesda, remained open throughout the storm. On Sunday afternoon, The Daily Dish on Grubb Road in Silver Spring was open and crowded during brunch service. The restaurant played music over its outdoor speakers and residents attempting to extract snow-covered vehicles paused to dance to an Elton John song. Nearby, sled-toting children headed for hills and built snowmen.
However, the county warned residents Monday that playing in the massive snow piles created by plows could be dangerous. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services warned that digging tunnels or forts in these piles may cause them to collapse—potentially trapping and burying children.
Ronald Reagan National Airport, Dulles and BWI Marshall Airport reopened Monday and flights resumed. Metro began operating on a limited basis, with Red Line service resuming between Medical Center and Union Station. Red Line service between Union Station and Glenmont was also scheduled to begin at 11 a.m., Metro said.
However, other effects of the storm are expected to linger this week. The National Weather Service predicts temperatures to remain cold, with highs Monday and Tuesday expected to reach only 34 degrees. It could be warmer Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, when highs may reach up to 40 degrees and possibly begin melting the massive amounts of snow.
As for Monday, Leggett encouraged residents to stay home and off the roads.
“In order to get as much done as possible in the neighborhoods, we continue to need the cooperation of many of our residents,” Leggett said. “Do not get out and drive, that will only hamper operations in Montgomery County.”
