Montgomery County has extended is emergency alert about brutally cold weather until Tuesday morning.
With most government offices closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, the county opened warming centers, mostly at indoor recreation center swimming pools.
Wind chills on Monday morning were below zero and temperatures tonight are expected to be about 10 degrees before warming to near freezing on Tuesday.
The Germantown Indoor Swim Center, Kennedy Shriver Aquatic Center, Martin Luther King, Jr. Indoor Swim Center and the Olney Swim Center were all been designated as warming centers from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday.
Workers at the centers reported no one had visited for warming as of mid-day.
Interfaith Works Empowerment Center in Silver Spring was available as a warming center from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Acting county Fire and Rescue Services spokesman Dave Pazos said the department hasn’t had any weather-related incidents, but the cold had grounded the U.S. Park Police Eagle 1 helicopter.
The county’s Swift Water Rescue team was dispatched for a disabled craft on the Potomac River, but the boat regained power and made it on the Edwards Ferry ramp without assistance, Pazos reported.
These occurrences are common no matter the weather, Pazos said.
The county’s Monday morning alert said wind chill values are expected to be below zero, with the potential for frostbite or hypothermia.
The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, the regional water and sewer utility, made repairs to several minor water main breaks over the weekend, according to the commission.
