Jason Shaw
Bristow residents hunker down Saturday morning as high winds and heavy snow have created treacherous driving conditions in the region.
As residents see snow accumulation over a foot early Saturday morning, the National Weather Service warns that more is coming and the strongest winds will occur Saturday afternoon. "Strongest winds will occur this afternoon through midnight tonight creating considerable blowing and drifting snow with blizzard conditions in the blizzard warning area," NWS said. Heavy snow and near or whiteout conditions will continue in the region, with additional accumulations; some areas could see 1-2 inches per hour. "Both GFS and ECMWF show an additional foot and half of snow through Sunday bringing storm totals in the 25-30 inch range," NWS said. While power outages are expected during the storm, NOVEC shows none reported in Prince William County as of 7:30 a.m. Prince William County continues under a Blizzard Warning. Prince William Police and the Virginia Department of Transportation are warning residents to stay home and off the roads.
According to VDOT, most roads throughout Virginia are in moderate to severe condition; roads continue to be plowed and treated throughout the storm.
"Throughout the storm, crews in Northern Virginia work on interstates, high-volume roads, and in subdivisions concurrently," they said. "Crews work to clear interstates and primary roads (routes numbered 1-599) first, then major secondary roads (routes numbered 600 and above) with vital emergency and public facilities, then other secondary roads and subdivision streets," they said.
Bristow Beat will continue to offer updates throughout the storm.
