(Washington, DC) The DC Snow Team (Department of Public Works and Department of Transportation) will deploy more than 200 plows to commercial and residential streets Sunday morning, December 8 to be on site in advance of the upcoming wintry mix of freezing rain and snow. Meteorologists predict the storm will move in Sunday morning, starting as snow and maybe accumulating about 1-2 inches. Snow is expected to change to freezing rain/sleet for most of Sunday afternoon into the evening. The temperature is expected to hover at or around 32F- 34F and then, start to rise Sunday night around midnight into Monday morning and change to all rain.
The team is closely tracking the weather. If there is no rain Saturday, crews will apply the brine/beet juice solution to bridges, ramps, other elevated structures and challenging residential streets to reduce the chance of freezing.
“Freezing rain is the most dangerous winter condition there is, so we urge residents to stay safe and stay home,” said DPW Director William O. Howland, Jr. “Make this a time for enjoying family, rooting for your favorite football team or catching up on that book you’ve been meaning to read.” Director Howland added that freezing rain also may result in loss of power, so residents should be prepared. Pepco strongly urges everyone to call 1-877-Pepco-62 (1-877-737-2662) to report power outages and downed wires (stay away from downed wires and report them immediately).
Property owners are asked to treat their sidewalks with an abrasive such as non-clumping kitty litter, a deicer or rock salt. This snow season, the Snow Team is testing the effectiveness of pet-safe deicer on bridges with pedestrian sidewalks.
DPW leaf collection crews are the backbone of the Snow Team; therefore, leaf collection will be suspended starting Friday, December 6 through the end of the event. These crews will return to collecting leaves and will continue collections in Area A neighborhoods until they are finished.
Winter Weather Safety and Preparedness Tips: If you must go out, travel cautiously. Assist elderly or disabled neighbors with clearing their sidewalks. Also, for plow drivers’ safety, “Don’t crowd the plow.” Residents are encouraged to go to snow.dc.gov for updates before, during and after winter storms, and for tips to get one’s home and family prepared for inclement weather. Residents also may sign up at alert.dc.gov to receive emergency alerts and notifications from Alert DC.
To track the plows, visit: snowmap.dc.gov.
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DDOT Website: ddot.dc.gov