county and western fairfax county and some banding on the east side of montgomery county, east side of 270 in to howard county to the northeast of us. one thing we will watch, we have been talking about this all day is the mix line. i think we will see this creep further north and east as the storm system gains strength but it initially inland, between hatteras and wilmington, north carolina and i think you will see a mix and that's why we have less snowfall accumulations down here. as cold air wraps around the system you are definitely back to all snow before it is said and done. go to the computer and we will talk about amounts. this is always posted on our website at wusa9.com. we also have the six zones on the website and that's pretty good deal when you are covering places from garrett county to the coast. and we have them broken down in terms of accumulation. 20 to 30 inches in the district, montgomery, fairfax and most of charles county. now, we are looking at the same

amount of accumulation up in the north and the west, even the panhandle, berkeley springs, jefferson county, that area in to shenandoah valley where we think some areas will get 30-inches in the shenandoah valley. little less, again, south and east. still a huge storm, 12 to 20 but we think it will mix with sleet and rain toward the northern neck and extreme southern maryland. okay. here we go. snow total answer inch and a half here. four in fairfax, 2 in smithsburg and leesburg two inches. we have had some reports in round hill and places further out in loudoun county with as much as four inches. dangerous super storm. it really is. two to six inches the next couple of hours and then six to 12 inches between 6:00 p.m. and midnight. near blizzard conditions and starts to taper off, two to four inches in the morning on

saturday and one to two inches in the afternoon on saturday. it will snow probably through the night. at least until midnight on sunday. in terms of accumulation it should shut off by evening, 6:00, 7:00, 8:00 on saturday. massive storm. look at this storm. one little piece of energy is actually going to die in to eastern kentucky, southwestern west virginia and then this area of low pressure will take over and track over the coast. almost get to us. doesn't pass our parallel. and then it starts to move east war out to sea. it is not going to hit new york or boston. it is a mid-atlantic storm, if you will. and it is a pretty slow mover. it will progress before it drifts out to sea during the day on saturday. as it drifts on saturday that's when the snow will taper off. heavy snow tonight, 12 to 20 inches, near blizzard conditions. lows 28 to 32. winds northeasterly at 15 to 25 and gusting. that's the latest. we are here with more information in a bit.

go to our website at wusa9.com and check out my blog. we will give you the top ten snowstorms and the top ten snowy winters and we are getting in on that. we will add that up later. >> we are in on the action, huh? >> yeah. >> we have seen conditions start to deteriorate out there. bruce leshan is in gaithersburg where he's been since early this afternoon. what's the latest out there, bruce. >> it is getting colder and the snow is icier and the national weather service has been talking about how extremely dangerous this storm is. it already claimed two lives. a couple of good samaritan who stopped to help somebody else who wrecked in the snow in western virginia on i-81 and they were hit by a tractor- trailer. we have seen a couple of trucks come by here, putting salt down on 355. they still have their plows up. the temperature on the pavement, the pretreatment, 355 stimlooks pretty good. but one thing you have to say, when you tell folks in

washington, d.c. there is as much as 28 inches of snow coming, they get ready. >> not sure which is better for my back the curved or straight one. >> reporter: what could be one of the worst winters in washington ever has been smoking hot business at this store in bethesda. >> ready for this? >> born and ready for it. believe me. i'm ready for it. >> ready to go. all set up and let's make it move. >> i doubt she will use that shovel. i think she has helpers at home. >> reporter: just about everyone who came out had a snow shovel or two hour three. >> just shut it down and watch the super bowl. >> ice melt is flying out of here. we can't keep up with it and we have another shipment coming in. and 5000 shovels coming between now and 2:00. >> we allocated extra time for shopping because we knew it would be crowded. >> this will be the first one

that taller than she is. >> what do you have? >> shovel. >> big shovel. >> small shovel, just for you. are you going to shovel. >> yes. >> reporter: but one store's great business is misery for another. >> i'm the proprietor of the hair salon here, and saturday is my busy day and this is the third one, beginning with the saturday before christmas, which is my busiest day of the year and now another saturday. >> you are losing money. >> oh, i come here to see my buddy because at least somebody is making some money. >> reporter: i didn't buy a new shovel. i still have my same old rusty old worn out one but you can see it really is starting to collect down here on the side streets. the places where you are not getting as much traffic. there's a good inch probably of snow down here. and let me just tell you we have had this measuring cup out

a little bit. and my cup almost runeth over. there's a lot of snow coming down in the last few hours. back to you. >> i see you have yourself a shovel there. not as bad as the one you had. >> it is the same old broken one. >> thanks a lot. take it over to peggy fox in tysons corner. peg, lovely in blue today. how are you doing? >> good. here at the silver diner they say they will be open tomorrow. they have a plan to get employees in. so if you happen to be out and about tomorrow, which you shouldn't be but if you have four-wheel drive and you can make it out they will be open. i too have a shovel. a nice little one here. let's see how much snow we have here. looks like an inch in the parking lot. it is very wet snow. great to make snowballs. the kids have been so excite about this snow and they are not standing out in it. it is very cold and the wind is blowing. the snow is coming down at a 45-

degree angle. it is not pleasant at all. not fun. the kids will have fun when the snow is over, i think, and then they can go sledding. this is international drive here. this is accumulating very fast. conditions are changing very quickly. oh, you can see a little sliding going on there as the carr turned the corner there and across the street is tysons corner one, tysons corner center. they are saying they are open regular time until 9:30. however, if you plan to come out, again, you shouldn't but if you do be forewarned there may be some stores that have already closed because employees need to get home. there is a plow truck coming there. it doesn't have the plow down, however. i guess he's, i don't know, doesn't look like he is dumping anything down there yet. definitely need some traction. be careful if you are going out to be on the roadway. hunker down and be safe. back to you guys. >> very good. thank you. peggy fox live in tysons

corner. >> alex trevino is looking at the roads in northwest washington. we saw plows coming through in virginia but what about our area, where you are right now? >> in the last hour or two it is amazing how much snowfall we are seeing. it is a significant change. this is just amazing. people are still out and about walking, but, you don't see this snowfall in south texas. not this. maybe one in every 100 years, but the snowflakes are becoming bigger. of course we are standing underneath this tree, and don't want one of these branches to fall on my head like the meteorite that fell a couple of weeks ago. there are still cars, people are driving on the roadways here. good thing is the main roadways are treated. so the side roadways that you have to be careful with. and the intake sidewalks are a little bit wet and dangerous. slippery. so that's something you will

have to take extra precaution as we are going in to the darkness here in an hour or so. so, take extreme caution. and watch where you are going if you are out and about. >> all right. great advice. thank you for that. we appreciate it. we will go back to armando trull at the snow command center in northwestville, maryland. obviously a hub of activity there. armando? >> absolutely. things are starting to heat up at the snow command center if i can mix my metaphors. but let's look at the situations in prince georges county. you can see different pictures. nine cameras of different key intersections on the road in prince georges county. one of the things they are telling us is right now snow is starting to stick on the roads. and how do they know? because they have this nifty little thing here which tells them what the average temperature is on the pavement. right now 26.3 is the average temperature on the pavement. and that means that the snow is beginning to stick. at this point, a big meeting.

that big meeting is starting right now. let's take a look. it is happening behind us. those are very important supervisors in the department of transportation. let's talk to susan hubbard and explain what are those folks saying in there? >> that's our senior command staff. they are discussing where we are at this point in our snow operations. they are going to decide exactly what is going on. they will decide if there's enough snow so that the plows can begin to plow. we have put some salt on the roadways in addition to the salt that was already on the roadways. so it should keep the roads clear until folks get home. but folks need to remember, there is a snow emergency in place in prince georges county. do not drive unless you absolutely have to, and please park off the roadway, but if you have to park only on the even numbered side. >> so there you have it. there's an important meeting going on right now to decide what will happen on prince georges county roads. and we will let you finish with

a look outside of the window, if you can. that's what the actual snow looks like out here in prince georges county. you are looking now at the salt dome. not too much activity. most of the 240 trucks have gone out, and they are out on the roadways dropping their load and coming back for more. reporting live in prince georges county, armando trull. back to you. >> thank you. hopefully most folks are home by now and staying off the roads but there are other things you can do to help crews do their job. move vehicles off snow emergency routes, keep them off. park in driveways or off road locations if possible. now, if you must park on the street, park on the even numbered side and remember by law most area residents are responsible to remove the snow and ice from the sidewalk in front of their own homes. we will check now on roadway conditions. patranya bhoolsuwan, you were talking about snowplows and emergency routes. are you seeing anything right now? >> the snowplows are definitely out there. a lot of places they are parked

on the side because they have treated the roads earlier. they are definitely out there once the snow accumulates. watch for them. crews are telling us to treat these heavy vehicles like first responders. so move off to the side or stay as far as possible for them to do their job. good news on i-95. i had an accident icon right there, southbound prince william parkway. just disappeared meaning the accident is gone now. but irs i-95 was quite for some time but now looking at accidents down there. so be extra careful. check the live shot on 66 in virginia. i'm moving you out more west because snow is accumulating more out here. so it is more dangerous driving conditions for sure. this is past centreville. looking at more cars at this hour. watch for ramps and overpasses where they freeze a little faster than on the actual roadways. another live shot for you on 395. this has been a good route so far. 395 and 95. not seeing many problems out

there. a lot of action at 10:00 or 11:00. a few more cars picking up but a good spot to be. 270, we will wrap it there. word of an accident. germantown road. traffic is moving here. right lane is blocked at germantown road. back to you. for those that have to drive tonight you should package emergency kit in the car in case you get stuck. it should contain -- if you were counting on metro to get you around during the storm, don't do that. above-ground rail service will be suspended for a time once the tracks are impassable. this happened during the holiday storm in december, as well. stay with 9 news now for the latest on the weekend super snowstorm. we will be with you all weekend. we will have continuing coverage on our website as well as wusa9.com as well as updates

on the facebook and twitter pages. so follow us there. we will be on the air all day on saturday beginning at 6:00 amount and then again on sunday morning with wall-to-wall super storm coverage. coming up we will check in at reagan national airport where dozens of flights were cancelled today ahead of the storm. and top? >> pretty good snow here in northwest. we will use our old-fashioned stick here and say about an inch and a half here in northwest. of course we have a super ruler and you can go to the website and there is a link and you can watch it grow. the winds are blowing over here. we have an inch and a half. take you out with live doppler. the darker the blue, the heavier the snow. everything is getting moderate snow right now. heavier snow is yet to come. we will tell you when. stay tuned.

welcome back to 9 news now at 5:00. a live picture in northwest dc where you can see the traffic is moving but the snow is sticking. topper and devon will join us in a few minutes with the updated super snowstorm forecast. over at reagan national, the airport is still open for business but there are no more flights scheduled for tonight. that could be because many were cancelled before the storm started. >> lindsey mastis live from reagan national with the latest on the snow situation there. do you have a lot of company or did people stay home? >> i have a lot of company but most of the people here are not passengers. as of 4:20, i'm told that's when the last of the departure and arrivals happened and after that a lot of the planes went back to storage. they are not going back tonight or tomorrow. all flights for tomorrow are cancelled. what i want to do is get behind a camera and show you what reagan looks like right now. it is december late.

over here is the security area. this is where people normally line up and some people have to spend, what, a half an hour, hour, and there's no one. of course there's no flights, but it has been like in the past few hours and scrolling along here you will see some open shops mostly people talking. this is the godiva store. he said during the last snowstorm he had to get hotel rooms for his staff because they were snowed in. the closed up at ten until 5:00 and said it is not worth it. he has sold a lot of chocolate today but that happened earlier in the morning because that's when everyone came by and switched the flights early in the morning and a lot of airlines let them do that for free. so people who got out this morning were lucky. by the afternoon flights started to be cancelled one by one and now there are no flights here at reagan national. one thing i want po point out is this building will be open all weekend.

there's really no reason to come down here because there are no flights but they wanted to make a point by saying the building itself will be open. live at reagan national, lindsey mastis, 9 news now. >> open but nothing is going anywhere, at least for now. thank you for that. >> we are not alone. to our south, a couple of flights made it out of roanoke before the storm moved in. the airport was busy all morning de-icing planes and plowing runways, but passengers on dozens of flights in and out of roanoke were forced to change their travel plans. the problem with this storm is just how quickly the heavy, wet snow is falling. in western virginia, all the roads were covered before noon in christianburg and blacksburg and as soon as the plows went through the streets were covered again in a matter of minutes. in north carolina, the big threat, ice. a wintry mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain moved in overnight. most of the snow changed to rain during the day. up to a quarter inch of ice could accumulate tonight in the piedmont area as the

temperatures drop. all right. top, it sounds like we are approaching those hours where things are going to get dicey on the roads. >> we certainly are. i peeked my head over the back roads in northwest and even the side roads here are getting slushy and an inch and a half of snow on them. in calvert county an inch and a half and reports in the panhandle of west virginia quite a bit in terms of snowfall, six to nine inches. devon will have more on that in a minute. 20 to 30 inches we think that will fall between now -- this is total storm accumulation by evening tomorrow. pretty much across the immediate area we are talking 20 to 30 inches. to the south, 12 to 20 inches. we really think the sleet and the rain will actually cut down on the accumulations there. especially between about 10:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. until fowfer or 5:00 in the morning and we will see it go back to snow. still a huge storm for you. these just in.

clarksburg, maryland, 3. because the storm itself is in georgia and will produce heavy snow as we get to the night time hours as it moves to a position on the carolina coast. you see the snow in dc, back in the mountains and charlottesville. we will watch this area of mixing over the course of the next six to eight hours particularly because we will see some mixing in southern maryland. it is inevitable. go out to devon and he will tell you about the storm report and live doppler. >> i'm here with the super super ruler. we measured anywhere from two inches of snow. starting to get a little buildup on what i say is facing the west, southwest flank here because that's where the wind on the terrace is coming in. it is sticking there and more ado you meanlation on that side. can't give that official total yet but around the two inch mark on the weather terrace. live doppler nine thousand and

you can see we tweak the colors now for you so we can get a better definition of where the moderate and heavier snow is starting to fall. if you start to see the purple shades, and brighter colors starting to mix in you know that is a heavy band of snow moving our way. generally all the bands, which are oriented from northwest to southeast, those bands are moving off to the northeast. that's the general direction orientation. zooming in to the heavier bands in northern virginia right now. as you see we are getting buildup. we have had hefty snow reports where heavy bands moved through through. i will start with maryland. the heaviest reports coming in, allegheny county t frostburg, 6 1/2 inches, four inches and up to frostburg, 7.5 inches of snow and that was the latest coming in at 5:00. and over towards frederick county, meyersville an inch of snow there. and also parts of charles county, down to waldorf is two

inches of snow. northern virginia checking in with the highest total so far, frederick county, central virginia seven inches of snow. little closer to home, alexandria and fairfax county, this is one of the higher totals so far, five inches of snow already measured there. as we go 0 the higher elevations in west virginia, nine inches are reported out that way. that's the latest from out here. topper, tell us what to expect. >> here we go. tonight is when it will get crazy. the things you can do. mark your down spouts, where things drain and that means the gutters, the down spouts off of the house. you need to be able to dig it out quickly and it has to melt sometime. mark the fire dry hydrant. and mark the storm drain and keep your heat pump free of snow snow. heavy snow tonight, 12 to 20 inches. near blizzard conditions.

low temperatures 28 to 32. winds northeasterly at 15 to 25 and gusty. by morning more snow, windy and additional two to four inches possible. temperatures 28 to 32. winds northeasterly at 15 to 25 and gusty. by afternoon, snow tapers off. again, the accumulating snow, the important snow. highs of 30 and winds at 15 to 25 and gusty. as it gets colder and drier, we are going to see some drifting. the next seven days. we will get you through this. once we are through tomorrow we are in good shape. low for a while, mid-30s. we pop up to almost 30 on tuesday. the next storm could be snow/rain snow, pretty cold behind the storm but we have to get through tonight. i can't emphasize that enough. tonight is the big-time show. this is all the warmup act. >> thank you for that, top. coming up dc's beloved panda tai shan lands in his new home away from all of this snow. a large piece of a plane comes crashing down in a mall

parking lot. first we take you out with a live picture, and where could this be, dear producer? it is a beautiful picture. >> it's lovely. >> somewhere out there. tree lined. covered with snow. outdoors. right outside of our studio. >> look at that. it is the weather terrace. >> that's it. >> you are watching 9 news now coverage of the super ói ( music playing )

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this is an area that can get notoriously icy when it gets bad. a lot of people made their home today. the heavy snow is coming our way and will be picking up in the next few hours. topper has the latest on the snowstorm. well, you hear the sound but on wall street stocks tried to make sense of the latest jobless numbers. there's the picture there. the unemployment rate dropped

by 3/100 a percent while employers continue to cut jobs. the dow finished up at 10012. the nasdaq rose 15 and the s&p jumped two. some shoppers outside of a miami mall got the surprise of their lives today. take a look at what fell from the sky in to the parking lot. the 17-foot piece of the wing came off of a 747 cargo plane. it didn't hit nobody. nobody was hurt but the airplane was on the final approach to miami when the piece fell off. the faa is investigating what happened. it was a welcome fit for two rock stars. the beloved panda tai shan and m ei lan arrived in china today to be part of a breeding program in that country. the american-born pandas were flown on a specially decorated fedex plane that took off from dulles yesterday. their flight took 14 hours and their arrival was broadcast on

chinese tv. >> the snow is starting to accumulate on roads in many parts of the area. topper is coming back with the latest super storm forecast. it is snowing in washington for what could be an historic winter storm. i'm joel brown. the story is coming up.

we are looking at our super ruler. you can get to this on our web camby going to our website at wusa9.com. it is a little skewed now because the winds piled up to one side. as we get going it will be a fairly accurate reading because it is sheltered from the wind. if you want top measure snow that's the best way to do it. you can find something that is sheltered from the wind and measure it, six hours later, scrape it. six hours later scrape it and keep a running total. start with live doppler. seeing good banding of the snow. the darker the blue the heavier the snow. many to fairfax county out to 66. there's some good snow right now showing up in chantilly and

also in vienna as you go out route 123. either side of 66, fairfax, as well. also in centreville as well some pretty good snows. heavy snows. you can see the lighter bands, lighter and heavier band of snow in here. it is starting to pick up but again this is kind of the warmup act as we get the area of low pressure down to the south to develop and move up the atlantic seaboard, at least up to us and moves out to sea. we will go to the computer and talk about amounts. this is on our website at wusa9.com. we take a general 20 to 30-inch range is accurate from the district, north, west and even east toward anne arundel county and prince georges county. get to the south, and you think you will mix a little bit with sleet and rain. i know you don't want to hear that, i don't want to say that but it is different from a pure snow. we talked about that on monday and tuesday how this was not going to be a pure snow for everybody but a big snow and in this case, our second historic

storm of the season. i can't believe it. anita, back to you. >> if you can't believe it we certainly can't believe it over here. the super snowstorm is becoming more dangerous by the hour. let's look at the latest information. as dangerous as the super storm is expected to be there is not a prettier picture than seeing washington landmarks embraced with snow. >> joel brown is joining us live from captiol hill with more on what could be a record- breaking storm here in dc. hey, joel. >> reporter: we came up to captiol hill, no place prettier to watch the snowfall in washington, but we know because of the sheer magnitude of the storm it is going to get ugly. the blast of snow falling on

washington could make history. >> we're going to be right up against the most snow that this city has ever seen. >> reporter: the storm could blanket the mid-atlantic region, from new jersey to north carolina. but dc's expected to take a direct hit. even the weathermen here have a hard time believing. >> again the totals we are talking about, i know, 20 to 30 inches. >> reporter: the city's largest employer, the federal government shut down early because of the forecast. >> employees sent home. >> home depot ran out of salt. >> reporter: residents are having a tough time finding supplies. >> no troubles in there. >> last-minute shoppers scooped up what they could and at the supermark, good luck. >> everybody is doing it at the same time. like a traffic jam getting through the aisles. >> the water and bread and milk is gone. >> i bet you never seen it like this. >> i'm from southern california and not used to this stuff. >> reporter: road crews are

treating the roads up and down the region. powerful winds could make driving a dangerous task. winter weather is stretching manpower and budgets. more snow is fallen in the nation's capital this winter than the past three combined. >> it has -- we have been warned all day about the danger of the storm it threatens to knock out power across the region. we are live on captiol hill, joel brown, back to you. >> thank you for that. our scott broom has been driving around suburban maryland since this began. >> all of those miles in search of a snow shovel. he is joining us with the latest road conditions. i want to show if you stopped long enough to look for a shovel. >> i had a minute to stop and keep things cool. i'm on the beltway at route 50 on the outer loop. my partners back at the tv station might be able to take our dash cam source here. it is called livestream. you can look at that for conditions on the beltway as i

talk about them. as topper has been reporting and throughout prince georges county where i have been over montgomery county, we are starting to see some slush building up on the highway. i have reduced my speeds down to 45 miles an hour. just to keep things safe and it is still a wet snow. it builds up on the windshield wipers and all of that. not great driving conditions but not critical yet. let me take you to the home depot in landover on central avenue. i have pictures i took in there. ran in there with my flip camera real quick. they are really hurting for supplies in there but they are trying hard. i got inside and there's a table set up with what snow supplies they have left. de-icing fluid, some sort of kitty litter stuff they had on that counter. kind of the last of the snow scrapers that were there and believe it or not they found some salt which was water

softener salt but they did have a few bags of that and put it out for people to buy, as well. i was on a snow shovel hunt because i don't have a little car shovel. i went back where the shovels are. they are out of snow shovels. don't have anything like it. but, i was able to come up with something and here is what i found. >> here are the results of the snow shovel hunt. i got a little car shovel, right here. it is pretty much what i was looking for. just something to have in the vehicle here in case i was in trouble. so home depot had it. they don't have a lot of other snow supplies but if you are looking for a little something like this, and i think i got the last one of these, a little snow scraper and brush for the car. did okay. >> all right. so there's my little home depot adventure. back on the beltway now. i think i will check in on a grocery store before the evening is over and before we retreat to a spot to hunker

down and get off the roads. for the moment, scott broom reporting live and you can watch this live on our website at wusa9.com. it is up and running almost all the time if you want to know where in the world i am. watch that and take a guess and i will see you later. >> scott, be easy out there. >> where in the world is scott broom. find out at wusa9.com. thanks a lot. check on the roads across the area on this friday night. patranya bhoolsuwan is in the 9 news now traffic center. >> well, scott broom is out on the roads in maryland. greg guise is actually in virginia. he just called in with a report of an accident 40-miles from the spot you are looking at past centreville. he said it is a pretty bad accident. three vehicles are involved because the conditions on the road get much worse the farther west you go. he has seen two or three inches on the ground now. be careful as you head out on

66 west of centreville. as we take a trip around the capital beltway, i want to show you this camera. it is getting worse on the american legion as you can see. it is pad bad for drivers out here. but on the left side you are seeing head lights coming in virginia, not much of a delay here. people are taking it slow. that's what we like to see on the roadways. outer loop traffic is not too bad heading in to virginia. we want to close with smaller roadways. we have concentrated on the interstates here at colesville. 29 in silver spring. we are seeing a little traffic, bus going by there. not too bad and people are taking it slow. you can see how slick the roads are here in silver spring. be extra careful. time your time wherever you are heading. and if you don't have to be on the roadways please stay home. stay with 9 news now for the latest on the weekend's super snowstorm. we will have continuing coverage on our website at wusa9.com. and check our updates on

facebook and twitter. we will be on the air all day on saturday, starting at 6:00 a.m. and then on sunday, in the morning again with wall to wall super storm coverage. >> a busy weekend around here. coming up, a judge makes a ruling concerning the alleged john edwards sex tape. but first the doctor who was in a california mansion where michael jackson went in to cardiac arrest was supposed to surrender to police today. we'll tell you why he didn't. and we will take you outside with a live picture from northwest dc. again, it is getting dark out there. and the storm is expected to be picking up as we go through the evening hours. topper is watching it and we have live team coverage of the super storm. we'll be right back.

you are looking at a live picture from the weather terrace. the storm is amping up by the hour and topper has the updated super snowstorm forecast coming up. making news today the

charges against michael jackson's doctor are going to wait. a crush media awaited the expected surrender today of dr. murray. the prosecutors upstaged the plan by announcing they weren't going to take action until next week. prosecutors have said murray will be charged with involuntary manslaughter in jackson's death. a former aide to john edwards has been found in contempt of court. andrew young and his wife appeared in a north carolina courtroom today after refusing to turn over an alleged sex tape to the democratic presidential candidates former mistress rielle hunter. the judge said the contempt ruling will be lifted if he turns over the photographs and the tape by wednesday afternoon. super size or super-- super size your super bowl viewing. how some projection hdtvs stack up. snow is picking up here in northwest and it will get harder and more intense. i want to remind everyone to check on the elderly and your pets. if you shovel, shovel early and

often. don't have to wait until the end of the storm. take you out with a live shot. you can see here in northwest it is beginning to accumulate in a lot of spots including the sidewalks which they are now shoveling. we will be back with the full forecast in just a minute.

time was, if you got into trouble out here, chris collins, volunteer firefighter, would be there to save your life. then one night, hit by a car at an accident scene, it was his turn to ride in the ambulance. after years of rehab, chris has learned to take care of himself. but money is so tight, he has trouble staying warm. he just can't afford heating oil. nice to meet you, chris. nice to meet you, and thanks for the oil. you look like you're a fighter, chris.

well, i guess i have to be. chris is among the millions of americans who risk their lives each and every day to keep us safe -- our firefighters, our police officers, our emts and first responders -- men and women who sacrifice for others and sometimes need our help. chris: thanks, joe, and thanks to citgo and the people of venezuela. hi, i'm joe kennedy from citizens energy, your nonprofit oil company. if you need help staying warm this winter, give us a call at... because no one should be left out in the cold.

get selsun blue for itchy dry scalp. strong itch-fighters target scalp itch while 5 moisturizers leave hair healthy. selsun blue. got a clue? get the blue. this is not your typical friday night at tysons corner. we are looking live at the snow- covered area. there are few cars out there and that's a good thing because the snow totals and intensity are supposed to pick up soon. topper and devon are coming up with the updated super storm forecast. no question you will be snow bound this sunday and more than likely watching the super bowl in hd right here on channel 9. so if you are rushing like a running back to buy a new tv, listen up. the good news, prices are down and the deals can be great this time around, but before you

sprint to the store, check out the test results on some super- size tvs. >> you can live large when you watch this front projector tv. the screen is a mega110 inches and look at how much bigger the picture is compared to a 51- inch set. >> you can only get a picture that big with a front projector and a separate screen and the prices have dropped dramatically. the one we are watching here costs $1,000. >> you need to watch a projection tv in a dark room. if not the video washes out and it is hard to see. if a plasma or lcd is a better fit for your home, consumer reports evaluated 90. they give a great picture but plasmas usually do a better job with dark scenes and lcds look better in a bright room. here's why. >> in bright light, lcds absorb the light so you told the contrast and plasmas reflect

the ambient light. >> reporter: lcd tvs don't look as good when they are viewed from the side. tests showed they can be difficulty with fast-moving images. you can see how the image blurs. >> that can be a problem if you are watching a football game with fast-paced action by some tvs have technology that speeds up the frame rate which can reduce blurring. >> reporter: one is this toshiba that has excellent picture quality and $1,400 it is $500 less than a similar set just one year ago. plasma televisions are way down in price. you can get a 50-inch ingignia for $650. to check out this and more go to our website at wusa9.com and click on "living $mart." >> topper shutt is appropriately dressed with his tie. >> not the prettiest tie in the world but it gets the point

across. >> it is lovely. >> the point is when i wear this tie, serious things are going to happen. >> take it off and then maybe they won't happen. >> i don't jinx it. >> good idea. >> i don't put it on until the snow begins. don't jinx it. >> already in. >> let's start with the big picture here. these are the snowfall amounts. this is unbelievable. hard to think of this but 20 to 30-inches across the board for the metro area. maybe pockets in parts of west virginia and also in parts of shenandoah with more than that but we think 20 to 30 is a good range. 12 to 20 to the south. less because of some rain and sleet mixing in and 6 to 12 in the northern neck and delmarva. although you folks will have blizzard conditions later tonight. great picture. damascus, maryland. thank you for sending this in. a great picture and keep the pictures coming and the storm reports coming on our website

at wusa9.com. okay. alexandria, four inches. we are a little suspect of that. we will say four inches in alexandria. six in winchester, 3.5 in frederick, maryland, 7.5 in forestburg and mineral county, 7 inches, as well. satellite picture, radar combined. here'ses in aive area snow right now. we will watch this rain line creep pretty far north but i think it will get in to southern st. mary's and calvert county. i think it will happen. it will retreat late tonight and go back to all snow. in the meantime, the snow extends to the shenandoah valley to charlottesville. let's talk about more snowfall amounts and doppler radar. devon is out on the terrace. >> we are looking at moderate snow continuing out here. flakes aren't as large as earlier but steady moderate snow region wide. let's go to doppler 9000. we tweaked things before so you can see where the moderate and heavy snows are. we brought them in to blue shades. where you see a steady blue or

the darker blue, that's steady to moderate snow. you start to see some purple shades coming in. brighter shades in the blue shades. that is where you know that is really coming down. in parts of northern virginia the bands of snow oriented from northwest to southeast are moving to the northeast. circling the heavier bands moving to the district. we will have periods of heavier snow. start in maryland, snow totals. rockville, montgomery county at 4:00, 2 1/2 inches of snow. i'm sure we have more since then. northern virginia, fairfax, fairfax county. four inches that was at 3:30 this afternoon. purcellville and loudoun county five inches of snow in west virginia. checking in with berkeley, martinsburg area, four inches of snow. i want to show you how big of a snowstorm this is. a good friend of mine grew up in falls church and he flew back in town to watch the snowstorm. john you are a big fan of snow. >> have dinner with that guy. i like that guy.

thank you, devon. heavy snow tonight, near blizzard conditions. winds northeasterly. doing more snow tomorrow. probably see drifting too as the winds continue and the snow is drier. two to four inches in the morning. temperatures 28 to 32. winds 15 to 25 and gusty. snee taper off one to two inches and highs around 30. winds turn more northernly and northwesterly at 15 to 25 and rather gusty. some of the snow will blow around we think tomorrow. again, the snow gets drier. the next seven days we'll get you through this. blizzard conditions in the morning and taper off. tuesday the next storm approaches late in the day. may see enough warm air improve to make it rain/snow rain. may be more insult to injury rather than a storm. low to mid-30s on thursday and friday. things will improve pretty quickly in terms of sunshine. not so much in terms of temperatures as we hold in the

30s all week. the snow will not go anywhere but we want it to melt slowly. please. we don't want to repeat of 1996 or 2003. >> because then you have flooding. >> and all kinds of things. for some the super bowl isn't complete without super stuffing themselves. up next some calorie counts to keep in mind if you don't want to blow your diet. we are always on at wusa9.com. stay with us. the super storm coverage continues on the air and on- line.

super bowl weekend is finally here and despite the snow folks are ready for a party. food is a big part of that. not to put a damper on anyones fun. topper is on my case but the calories consumed can be shocking. here's a checklist and a few ways to cut back on what sticks to your waistline. >> reporter: nutrition experts say it is not a far-fetched estimate to say many fans will scarf down 3,000-calories super bowl night. to keep track of the damage, the diet detectives have come up with the big-game eating

extravaganza calorie count. one half of a digiorno pizza, 975-calories. substitute a thin crust pizza and cut the calories way down. another party time offender, tgi fridays loaded potato skins, 218-calories a piece and who eats just one? another football favorite, those foot long subs, meatball and cold cut subs from 800 to 1200-calories. go for turkey meatballs and cut the calories in half. no super bowl gathering would be complete without the wings but six wings will cost you 400- calories. enjoy in moderation or be ready for serious post-game workouts. >> maybe you can shovel snow to burn it off. for healthier but crowd pleasing option option, head to our website at wusa9.com and click on living well. thanksr