First Snow Storm in DC Area Leaves Gridlock, Accidents and Schools Closed

Tuesday morning brought the region's first snow storm, with the National Weather Service issuing a winter storm warning for parts of Virginia and Maryland. The Associated Press rounded up the results of this morning's tough commute and school closures in the D.C. metro area.

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VIRGINIA

Amid a social media backlash, Virginia's largest school system is apologizing for its decision to stay open after an ill-timed snowstorm.

Snowfall that hit just before Tuesday's rush hour created numerous delays and difficulties for school buses.

On Twitter, the decisions by Fairfax and Loudoun county schools to stay open Tuesday were roundly panned. The hashtags (hash)closeFCPS and (hash)Wayde – a reference to school system spokesman Wayde Byard, who delivers the news when closures are implemented – made the worldwide list of trending topics.

Later Tuesday morning, Fairfax County schools issued a statement apologizing for the difficulties that families faced Tuesday morning and saying that they made the decision to stay open based on the information available to them at the time.

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WASHINGTON, D.C.

District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser says the morning commute was rougher than anticipated because the nation's capital got more snow and colder temperatures than expected.

Bowser said at a news conference late Tuesday morning that she expects the afternoon rush hour to go smoothly.

The new mayor says she's "not satisfied" with the traffic backups, but she says city officials made the best decisions they could, given the forecast.

Bill Howland, director of the city's Department of Public Works, says roads were pre-treated with a brine solution, but it didn't work as well as expected because of lower temperatures. He says the city got up to 4 inches of snow when forecasts called for about 1 inch.

Bowser says she stands by the decision to keep schools open.

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MARYLAND

Authorities say morning snowfall caused dozens of car accidents on Maryland roadways, including one that left a teenager in critical condition.

In Anne Arundel County alone, police say they responded to 142 accidents between 3 a.m. and 10 a.m. Tuesday. Most were minor, but one involved an SUV that ran into a tree in Pasadena around 7 a.m.

Police say the car was carrying two students driving to Northeast High School and that both were taken to Shock Trauma in Baltimore. A 17-year-old girl was in critical condition, and a 17-year-old boy had non-life-threatening injuries.

In Frederick County, a salt truck and a dump truck collided on Interstate 70 near Mount Airy. No injuries were reported.

Many schools were closed in Maryland, though Anne Arundel County Public Schools remained open.