Friday, January 11, 2019

Safeway issues "storm alert," crews treat roads ahead of Rockville snowstorm

The first winter storm of 2019 is about thirty hours away, and preparations have been a mixed-bag, particularly as forecasters scale back the expected accumulation numbers for the D.C. area. Some Safeway stores in the county have posted signs outside declaring a "Storm Alert," exhorting customers to "Be Prepared! Stock up on supplies today!" But there was no apparent rush on supermarkets as of last night. The Safeway store at the Shops at Sumner Place in Bethesda was fully stocked with milk, bread and paper goods inside, and snow shovels and firewood outside. Other grocery stores visited last night were equally well-stocked.

Montgomery County's Department of Transportation was a bit more busy. Trucks were pretreating roads from Bethesda to Burtonsville Thursday night into Friday morning.

Suburban News Network
STORM CENTER

Winter Storm Gia is expected to hit Montgomery County around 2:00 PM tomorrow. Temperatures should be just above freezing at that time, but will drop below 32 degrees over the next few hours after that. Expect a snow accumulation of around 2 inches by Sunday night. Low temperatures will make for dangerous travel conditions.

5 comments:

  1. Winter Storm Gia? What gave you the impression that this snowfall had a name? Hurricanes have names given to them by the National Hurricane Center, but who named the snow? The Weather Channel is a TV channel, not a government agency.

    I used to watch The Weather Channel. A LOT. But after they were purchased by NBC/Universal, they went into a nosedive, focusing more on giggly morning talk shows, “personalities” rather than meteorologists, and cheesy reality shows. The last straw was when they started naming the snow.

    One Facebook user posted THIS criticism: “Naming winter storms is the dumbest idea ever. Why hasn’t NWS or any other reputable weather reporting source joined in the naming? Oh, maybe they still feel their role is serious reporting – instead of sensationalizing, dramatizing and commercializing.” It’s pretty much how I have always felt.

    TWC’s Tom Niziol attempted to deflect the criticism: “One reason we’re doing this, simply put, is we can. We cover weather on a national scale. By ascribing a name to a weather system that’s gonna create those types of impacts, we can follow it right across the country.”

    THAT’S their answer? “We do it because we CAN”?? And the only way the personalities at TWC can keep their eye on a weather system is to give it some kind of cute name? That’s the silliest thing I’ve ever heard.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 12:56: I agree that The Weather Channel has declined severely since the 1990s. There are 100 other channels showing documentaries and reality shows - we go to TWS for weather!

      Delete
  2. What is with the coat and umbrella? Are you trying out for the Topper Shutt?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Little Topper Schitt!!!

    ReplyDelete