Winter storm to hit Maryland with up to 12 inches of snow
Snow plows hit the road in Maryland. (Anthony C. Hayes)
Gov. Martin O’Malley declared a state of emergency one day before a winter storm is expected to wreck havoc in Maryland, DC and Virginia.
The National Weather Service also issued a winter storm warning for Maryland taking effect late Wednesday night into early Friday morning.
The storm, named Pax by The Weather Channel, blasted the south, especially in Atlanta, and left hundreds of thousands without power.
Governors in seven Southern states also declared emergencies as the ice and snow moved eastward from Texas. The storm is expected to grow stronger as it leaves the coast of North Carolina and drops heavy snow from Virginia to Maine.
More than 100 million Americans are under a winter storm warning, watch, or advisory, the National Weather Service said. Many airlines flights in Atlanta have been cancelled and more are expected. A nasty ice storm is impacting the south and it’s heading to the East Coast.
So far, 1,576 flights were canceled Tuesday, and 2,697 were scrubbed for today, according to FlightAware, a Houston-based tracking service. About 5,500 homes and businesses from Arkansas to North Carolina also lost power, utility websites show.
“The storm is on track,” weather service meteorologist Bruce Terry told USA TODAY. “That much freezing rain and sleet can be devastating. It will mean downed trees and power lines.”
Meteorologists are predicting the storm will hit Maryland sometime between 8 and 10 p.m. Wednesday and continue until midnight Thursday in Maryland. Expect up to 12 inches in Baltimore County with most of it hitting the state by Thursday. That is expected to be mixed with rain and sleet, and southeast Baltimore could get the most of that mixture.
Expect power outages as both Pepco and BG&E are getting prepared to deal with the fall out.
Stay warm!
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