Shore hit with subzero wind chill, driving snow

A powerful blizzard howled across Delmarva on Thursday, unleashing a dangerous mixture of subzero wind chill, hurricane-force wind gusts and driving snow — each rivaling the worst of any winter storm in decades.

Major highways were barely passable even in four-wheel drive vehicles, most back roads had turned into snowdrifts and the biting cold was forecast to sink its teeth ever deeper.

FRIDAY UPDATES: Weekend outlook: "Just frigid, gross coldness"

Through noon Thursday, Maryland State Police tweeted they had responded to 86 crashes, 146 disabled vehicles calls and 534 calls for service. The lower Eastern Shore was the area most heavily impacted by the winter weather.

“You don’t have to go out,” said Ocean City Director of Emergency Services Joe Theobald. “Stay in. It’s unsafe.”

The governors of Maryland and Virginia declared states of emergency for both portions of the Eastern Shore. Meanwhile, schools and government offices prepared to close for a second day in a row as road crews scrambled to unearth miles of roads from their frigid tombs.

Their efforts weren’t getting any assistance from the weather. The National Weather Service predicted lows plunging into the single digits and highs coming nowhere near breaking the deep freeze until Monday. Even then, the forecast high is just 45 degrees.

“There are just reinforcing shots of cold air coming in,” meteorologist Mike Rusnak said.

Experts called the coastal storm a “bomb cyclone,” and it lived up to its explosive moniker. The wind and snow intensified rapidly Wednesday night into Thursday morning. A wind gust of 77 mph was recorded near Fisherman Island at the southern tip of the peninsula while torrents of horizontal snow gathered in heaps 6-10 inches deep.

The wind isn’t expected to die down until Friday afternoon, leaving drivers and cleanup crews to contend with another day of blowing snow. Wind gusts of over 35 mph are possible, Rusnak said.

“Just stay off the roads as much as you can because everything is still snow-covered. And the blowing snow is making visibility an issue. The snow is light and fluffy, so it’s blowing around quite easily,” he said.

More: Friday outlook: A heaping helping of cold weather, blowing snow

Crashes and outages

Officials warned residents to stay off the roads as winds piled up snowdrifts across the region on Thursday, and a number of residents on the Virginia section of the peninsula reported power outages.

Dozens of crews were dispatched and were working to restore 22 outages scattered across the Virginia Shore.

As of 1 p.m. Thursday, Salisbury police reported more than 60 vehicles stuck or stranded, and four crashes, with one resulting in injury.

Virginia State Police in the Chesapeake Division, which includes the Eastern Shore and Hampton Roads areas, responded to 212 emergency calls between 8 p.m. Wednesday and 5 a.m. Thursday, as the winter storm moved across the region.

That number included 101 crashes and 74 disabled vehicles.

As of 6:15 a.m. Thursday, Chesapeake Division troopers were responding to six crashes and 18 disabled vehicle calls.

For the fire company, “The majority of calls have been to assist stranded motorists and cars off the road," said Don Amadeo of the Tasley Volunteer Fire Company in Accomack County, Virginia around noon Thursday. "Roads are treacherous!”

"The roads are bad," Salisbury Mayor Jake Day said. They are not really passable to most vehicles ... if you don't have four-wheel drive, don't even consider it."

Unless it's a medical emergency, he said, people should stay off the roads.

"Don't create emergencies by driving unnecessarily," he said.

'I thought this was a turn lane'

As an arctic day dawned in Salisbury, inert cars dotted several roads with their hazard lights flashing. Most were of the two-wheel drive variety.

Karlo Paver knows a thing or two about driving in the snow. He’s from Iowa.

But Thursday morning, he had sloshed only about a block in his rented Toyota Camry before it lodged itself hopelessly in the snow.

“I didn’t see how thick this area was, and I thought this was a turn lane,” said Paver, who is staying at a Salisbury hotel while he oversees construction work at the soon-to-open Proximity Malt plant in Laurel.

Paver sat in his running car for about 15 minutes. His insurance company turned down his request for help. But that help would soon take a different form: a Dodge Ram pickup truck with a set of towing cables.

Ray Bradford of Salisbury hooked up the rear of the Toyota to his front bumper, threw his truck in reverse and hauled the car back onto solid ground. Paver turned around and drove the block back to his hotel, hazard lights flashing all the way.

The National Weather Service in Wakefield, Virginia, said an additional 3-6 inches of snowfall was expected for Maryland's Eastern Shore before the storm left the region later in the afternoon.

More: Snow closings and cancellations on Delmarva

More: Snow: The latest road conditions and traffic closures

This is Judith Crandell's first winter in Milton, Delaware.

"We moved from Ohio so I'm a little disappointed we have worse weather than they do," Crandell said, laughing. "We're stuck in the house just like we were in Ohio."

When they were considering moving to Sussex County, Crandell said a lot of folks told them the winter temperature was around 40 degrees.

"I think a lot of it has to do with climate change," she said. "Everything is topsy-turvy."

Crandell said her and her husband have plenty of food and good books to ride out the storm, and they took down their ornaments. Crandell, who is a writer, said she's planning to work on some edits as well.

For what would be a normal business day in Salisbury, things were unusually quiet. Many stores and restaurants were dark inside.

Not so at the Wawa gas station at Dagsboro Road and North Salisbury Boulevard. Outside, assistant manager John Venters shoveled the walk and shook out heaps of crystalized salt from a paper cup.

He arrived at 6 a.m., just another day at work but for his drive from the Long Neck area of Sussex County taking an hour and a half.

“One guy told me he got to here from Lewes in 45 minutes,” Venters said, shaking his head. “I don’t know how he did that. I wasn’t trying to break speed records.”

Destiny Wilkenson did not stay off the roads, and ended up stuck in her car in Salisbury.

"I kind of just wanted to go out and see it all," she said. "Probably should have walked now that I think about it. But the people around here are so friendly, I had five gentlemen stop and help push my car out."

Eddie Murdock was “taking a stroll in the snow” in downtown Salisbury as it continued to fall Thursday morning..

“I love the snow," he said. "Been waiting for a good snowfall for a few years. I just wanted to get out this morning and enjoy everything. We don't get to enjoy this too often.”

Storm at the beaches

Whipping winds and snow pounded the Delmarva beaches Thursday. Roads were still covered with snow despite the many efforts of plows throughout Ocean City and Coastal Highway.

A high surf advisory is in effect for Maryland and Virginia shore beaches until 1 p.m., producing localized beach erosion and dangerous swimming conditions.

Most gas stations and convenience stores were open as usual in the north part of Ocean City. 7-Eleven was open throughout the storm but had not seen many customers around 6:30 a.m.

Jamie Snyder, of Ocean City, was just getting to work at the 7-Eleven. Her four-wheel drive on her Jeep had no trouble.

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“(Roads) weren’t as bad as I thought they would be,” she said. “I saw all the salt trucks hard at work.

Most of Ocean City heeded the many warnings from weather services and the town. But many four-wheel drive vehicles still needed to be shoveled out by the Ocean City Fire Department and Ocean City Police Department, who were patrolling the snow-covered streets.

Ocean City Deputy Fire Marshal Ryan Whittington was out helping cars and trucks that were stuck throughout the afternoon. He also warned residents to stay indoors, test smoke alarms and be with family members.

"It is not safe to be out on the roads today," Whittington said. "Today’s the perfect day to stay in with your family and enjoy movies.

"The Ocean City Public Works Department is working diligently to clear roadways. Ocean City Mayor (Rick) Meehan and officials have met with Governor Hogan and his team to ensure Ocean City and the surrounding areas have all necessary resources to get roads open."

But the treacherous conditions didn't stop one duo. When his dog needed her routine morning stroll, Chris Iacona headed onto the Ocean City Boardwalk at 5th Street with his pup.

“It’s her morning walk, and she wants to do it no matter what the weather is,” Iacona said around 8 a.m.

Iacona has live in Ocean City for 32 years, and he was only out on the Boardwalk because he could walk from his home on the bayside.

He certainly was enjoying the weather still.

“Everybody should see it like this — it’s fun as long as you dress warm,” he said as wind made it almost impossible to see more than a block on the Boardwalk.

More: Snow driving: How to stay safe on the roads

Shelters stay open

The Immanuel Shelter in Rehoboth Beach was operating normally Thursday morning. Janet Idema, president of the board of directors, said the organization took preparation measures prior to the storm.

"We had food delivered last night instead of today," Idema said. "We made sure we had plenty of salt, plenty of shovels."

The shelter's regular staff managed to make it in on Thursday. Staff and the 20 current residents helped clear the sidewalk.

"They've been cleaning up, digging up snow," Idema said. "They look like they're doing fine and they are warm."

At Diakonia in Ocean City, staff members came in Wednesday and were prepared to stay a few days.

"We're just hunkering down and hoping power stays on," executive director Claudia Nagle said, adding that the shelter worked with the Department of Social Services, the Health Department and county officials to make sure their emergency plan was in place.

There are currently 38 residents staying Diakonia, and Nagle said there hasn't been a spike in people requesting shelter.

"If the need came up or if something happened where more people needed shelter, we coordinated as a community to make sure we could accommodate that," she said.

Nagle said one of her staff members walked to the shelter Thursday morning. She was a block away on Old Bridge Road and faced blustery snow-packed winds.

"That's how dedicated the staff is," Nagle said. "They make sure everything is well taken care of."

Tough road conditions in Somerset

Crews in Somerset County began plowing roads overnight, but many were soon covered again as the wind created drifts as high as 5 feet in some areas.

Route 13 in Princess Anne was snow-covered, but passable.

Toward Crisfield, road conditions became more treacherous, causing motorists to become stranded, said Yvette Cross, director of Somerset County Emergency Services.

“Everybody’s getting stuck down there,” she said.

A section of Route 413 between Tawes Campus Drive and Kingston Lane in Westover was closed for a while after a snowplow went into a ditch, Cross said. It has since been reopened.

State roads crews have been plowing and salting routes 13 and 50 to make sure they are passable, said Taneesha Hankerson, a spokeswoman for the State Highway Administration.

“We’ve been working around the clock since Tuesday,” she said.

SHA crews reported 11 inches of snow in Princess Anne this morning, which was the deepest they had encountered so far, Hankerson said.

The storm in Virginia

The highway department reported the condition of Route 13 northbound in Northampton County, Virginia was severe, with deep snow or ice from the southern boundary of the county to the Accomack County line.

The National Weather Service said a blizzard warning for the Virginia Shore was extended until 6 p.m. Thursday, and a wind chill advisory was set for Thursday from 10 p.m. until Friday at 10 a.m.

A&N Electric Cooperative said Thursday afternoon that its crews continued to restore scattered outages. At about 8:45 a.m. nearly 2,270 co-op members had a power outage, which was the most members affected at one time, the co-op said. By 11 a.m. that number had been reduced to about 750 members, and by 2:45, to about 200 outages.

Members who have previously reported an outage, but have not yet been restored can report the outage again by using the SmartHub app or by calling 1-800-431-2632, the co-op said.

"Drifting snow on secondary roads continues to impede our crews’ ability to reach some outages swiftly. Crews will continue making repairs until all power is restored," the cooperative said.

While the front end of the cooperative’s Tasley office was closed for business Thursday due to the heavy snow and high winds, the Operations Center was opened and staffed throughout the storm.

Sgt. Andrew Saucedo of the U.S. Army National Guard was out on the Eastern Shore of Virginia's back roads during the thick of the winter storm Thursday morning. His unit, from Virginia Beach, got to the Eastern Shore on Wednesday night to lend assistance in what is likely to be among the worst snowstorms in recent memory.

By mid-morning, Saucedo and his fellow Guardsman already had picked up two doctors and taken them to Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital, and picked up Virginia state troopers to take them to work. Then they headed out through deep drifts on snowbound Locustville Road to pick up a dispatcher who was headed to work at the Eastern Shore of Virginia 911 Center.

Asked about road conditions they saw Thursday morning, Saucedo was succinct: "White ... There are still vehicles broken down in the middle of Route 13 ... Right now, I wouldn't go anywhere."

Saucedo has done tours of duty in both Afghanistan and Iraq, so harsh conditions are nothing new to him — it's just snow blowing instead of sand, he said.

The Virginia Beach Guardsmen are staying at the Onancock Armory.

As far as crashes, no fatalities were reported as of 6 a.m. Thursday, spokeswoman Corinne Geller said. Most of the crashes involved damaged vehicles and there were a few injuries, she said, adding calls to police for disabled vehicles — those that get stuck or slide off a road but do not qualify as a crash — are increasing as the storm continues to push through.

The police remind people to call 511 or go to www.511virginia.org for road conditions and not to call 911 or #77 for that purpose.

“We need to keep emergency lines open for emergency calls,” Geller said.

Salisbury update

Mayor Jake Day said in a live Facebook video that the city had been plowing since 2 a.m. using nine salt trucks with plows, and as of about 9 a.m. had used 125 tons of salt solution.

The 911 call center was dispatching to life-threatening situations. Day said to call 911 if you think it's a life-threatening situation and let experts decide.

Private property owners are responsible for clearing sidewalks. Day said the city wouldn't be enforcing its shoveling rule Thursday, but people would need to shovel by Friday.

Private contractors and businesses were reminded about the $500 fine for each incident for pushing snow into the street. Fines will likely come down on the property owner, so the city urges residents to speak with contractor.

Warnings and advisories

Maryland State Police have activated snow emergency plans in Wicomico and Somerset counties and people are being advised to stay off roads.

Schools, colleges and government offices were closed Thursday throughout Delmarva and most hospitals were operating on an emergency schedule.

In Sussex County, Gov. John Carney issued a Level 1 Driving Warning.

That warning means that any person operating a vehicle on Delaware roadways must exercise extra caution. Driving is not banned, but motorists are encouraged not to operate a motor vehicle unless there is a significant safety, health or business reason to do so.

The blizzard warning remains in effect until 7 p.m. Thursday in Delaware. Temperatures are expected to drop, creating icy conditions that make it unsafe to drive.

This report will be updated.