confirmed. good job, lorton, snow. as we get towards waldorf, we think this is sleet. if you are around hughsville, give us a call. let us know, because we need a pair of eyes here, and also this could be sleet on the east side of 95. all right, let's go ahead and go to the computer for a minute. we'll talk about, we'll show you the scope of this storm. it's a very, very large storm with, you know, snow all the way back in the midwest and that little sleet area, that's what we are watching. notice how much moisture is building down to the south. the coastal storm, the second storm beginning to really take shape. the storm that brought all the snow to the midwest, that's not our storm. that's going to die in the ohio valley. that's not going to be a problem for us. what will be a problem will be heaviest snow wednesday morning, near blizzard conditions wednesday morning. a dryer snow, so that will really be a problem with the blowing and drifting snow on wednesday. may not be snowing there hard tomorrow afternoon, but the winds will really reduce visibility.

that's something we are concerned about and that mix south and east. we'll come back and break down how much snow will fall and look ahead to the weekend. >> back to you. >> we usually check out the evening rush, but i got to say, it seems like the morning rush never ended. >> rush hour combined with the snow, it's going to be a mess on many routes most of the time. a good time to remind folks as you take a shot at 270, that it's going to be dangerous conditions out there. time to slow down, use extra caution with all the snow. as we check out on i-66, moving well between 495 and 7100. as you move passed that 234, actually, some good news. that is gone now, disabled vehicle was blocking the right lane here. that is gone, it is moving better between 29 and 234. also good news on 395. delays easing up quite a bit here between washington boulevard and duke. where we see slow coming down. a lot of slick spots to watch

out for and smooth out to union station here in town, probably going to be lonely, amtrak canceled many routes today due to downed trees and power lines, so if you are going to be using amtrak tomorrow and for the rest of the week, be sure to call ahead. lesli, back to you. >> we'll give you a quick note about metro. metro rail is operating with full service. we should also tell you as far as schools are concerned, dc, montgomery, loudoun counties are all canceled through the rest of the week. i should say, dc to be correct is canceled for tomorrow. loudoun and montgomery for the rest of the week. we got this information updated for you at the bottom of the screen. you can check it here at wusa9.com. let's check something else. the medical community is putting out a call for value tiers with -- dialysis center

says some missed two sessions already. doctors community hospital in prince georges county need help transporting patients to and from the hospital. and holy cross hospital needs volunteers late tonight and tomorrow. if you can help, go to wusa9.com and cling on this story under headlines. all right, we are going to get more of our team coverage this hour. bruce leshan is taking a look at problems in some montgomery county neighborhoods and mike is checking out neighborhoods in prince georges county. bruce, we'll start with you. >> yeah, lesli, it started to snow out here and that is likely to only make the traffic situation here along 355 even worse. at least they have traffic. there are a lot of neighbors where the snow from last week continues to completely block the road.

and they are still waiting for someone to come in and restore power. >> you left the door wide open. >> suri wood lane in bethesda. >> it doesn't matter. >> if you leave your door wide open. >> the town homes very without power. it's cold. it's so cold, you can't take your boots off. it's not pleasant. we have more coming. >> luke tried to get a power crew from out of town to help. >> i stopped them, told them we had no power here and they weren't aware of it. i said, did pepco not tell you that? they said no. >> i got everything packed in snow. >> he has taken everything out of the freezer. >> that's the chicken. >> just terrible. >> i have been living with my

son and it's been very difficult coming back and forth, getting clothes and everything else. >> hi. >> on benton avenue. >> you guys are trapped. can't get out. i don't know if you have health emergencies, i don't know what they would do. >> neighbors got so tired of waiting for a plow. >> we brought our reenforcements over here. >> they brought in some high school kids to shovel the entire street by hand. >> no plows came, so we had to do it ourselves. >> bye, thank you. >> thanks a lot, guys. >> the plow may have been scared off by a downed power line. >> anything can happen and i don't think that we should get any kind of emergency equipment down this street in time to help somebody. >> and more snow is falling. >> kind of depressing, now the scene here, the roads are starting to get a little bit slippery. they have it cleared out here at montgomery shell, where they

have been hosting us in very hostile for a long time. they have no gas inside, as you can see the yellow bags here, because they haven't been able to get any deliveries. take a look, some good news, the tanker truck just pulled up, if they can figure out how to get through all this ice and up the driveway into the gas station. now, my colleague, mike wooton is in prince georges county where he has been checking out the scene with people out power and without plows. >> well, drive through the city of laurel and across prince georges county and you'll see most condo and apartment complexes look like this one, mostly clear. here, it took a lot of back breaking work by residents to get this even passable. and tonight, they want to know why they were left behind. >> at the villas at laurel lake, snow shovels replaced plows, people doing the work of heavy equipment. >> i realize that my neighbors

plowed our street, which was unbelievable. >> because contracted plows almost completely ignored this lot during the storm and nearly 24 hours later, residents stepped in. >> it's tiring. >> my back was sore, my arms were sore. >> our backs are starting to hurt. >> clearing the white that is already costing them green in condo fees. >> i pay around $2500. >> it became frustrating when the residents came here to the homeowner's association and found a completely clear parking lot. >> is it safe to say you don't believe you have gotten your money's worth? >> i'm frustrated right now. yeah, i could say that i haven't gotten my money's worth. >> we went to the management company and the president followed us back. >> guy that came back here. taking questions and plenty of complaints. >> do you think based on being here and seeing the situation, that this was handled properly? >> i do not. that's one of the reasons i'm here, to make sure i get up close and personal. >> minutes later, help

arrived, plows, and manual laborers, removing snow that should have been cleared a day ago. >> the president of the management company had a long conversation with the landscaping crew and in fact, they are still at it trying to clear this area. now meantime, we're told by the county executive of prince georges county that 90% of the side streets are clear. all of the major roads are clear, but that is for now, as this storm arrives. for now, reporting live in laurel, 9news now, lesli, back to you. >> good for those residents. well, dominion power admits they made a huge, but unusual mistake during the last storm and it cost one family their home. we'll share their story coming up. first, a major airline cancellation to tell you about, and more on the impending storm from top. >> we have moderate snow here in northwest, covering the terrace here and adding to our already record snowfall. we'll take you out with live doppler 9,000 and we are

getting batches of heavy snow. the oranges and yellows you see, that is actually sleet. actually confirmation of sleet over towards plum point and parts of northern calvert county. so we'll watch that mixed layer. also talk about how much will fall and when. devon lucy will join me after this. g÷gyç

if you depend on metro, all the stations are open tonight. that could change as this snow comes down. you want to check if you are trying to do something that is metro -- if you are trying to get on metro at some point later this evening. this winter storm that is hitting the midwest is heading our way. it is causing problems for passengers in chicago. canceled earlier today, from the air, to the roads.

our scott broome is out via skip checking on conditions. are you still in bethesda, or where are n you now? >> as the snow begins to fall, there's something i'm worried about. check a look outside, you can see just like here on new hampshire avenue, just like everywhere else, you will be driving around, relatively clear, then you lose a lane. there's uncleared lanes, etcetera, and as the new snowfalls, it will be more difficult to see where those berms are. it's going to be a pretty serious problem for drivers. this lost situation created a lot of gridlock. it's a great example of the problems today. >> is this a tough situation. i thought the roads were clear. >> driving conditions are horrific. why do we have that sheet of ice and slush in the middle of the street? and people can't drive and they drive too fast.

>> the lanes are closed and you have two lanes into one lane. >> on a normal commuting day, walking where i am now would be suicide. this is the right travel lane, and of course, the problem is, the right lane has not been cleared, which is reduced the available lanes going inbound from 3 to just 2. and the snow here is knee deep and it is frozen solid. >> now from the beltway to just past -- >> it goes 35? >> 35, 40 minutes. >> it was so bad, this ambulance had to go out into on coming traffic lanes to get by. on montgomery avenue, thick ice added to the gridlock. >> just unbelievable a. a road like this, they should do a much better job. >> if i didn't have to come out for business, i wouldn't

have even come. >> back live now, traveling on new hampshire avenue as light snow is falling, and new hampshire avenue also, one of these roads, major through ways with only two of the three lanes open because of the snow and light snow beginning to fall now, which is covering up some of these lanes and making it difficult to know exactly when you have a lane and when you done. good news is, there's a lot less gridlock. it seems like people got home early. they gotten to the store. a lot of them have gone home as this new storm comes in. reporting live, scott broome, 9news now. >> take it easy out there, scott. we want to pass along an important consumer alert. your park your car along the emergency route, it will not be there when you come back. the city will ticket you about $250 and they will tow your car. now in most cases, the cars are not impounded, they are just moved to a nearby street. so you want to walk around and see if you can find it. if you can't, call 311, the

nonemergency number to find out where it was moved. and something else you should know about. toyota issued its third recall in less than three months. the prius hybrid, toyota says a software fix will take care of its braking glitch in those hybrid cars. the company vowed to pressure announcing the recall that has been expected since last week. it impacts 437,000 prius and other hybrid vehicles around the world. >> together, we will do everything in our power to regain the confidence of our customers. >> toyota already received about 200 complaints from hybrid owners in the u.s. and japan. drivers say there's a delay when they hit the brakes, particularly on bumpy roads or in cold weather. up next, a mad dash to find gas. our peggy fox is out trying to pin down some stations for you. she's coming up live, and see how the district is preparing

for this new storm. you're watching 9news now, and as we go to brake, we'll take you to a parade. this is people in new orleans to celebrate the state's super bowl win. this is the who dat nation. and they know how to gather and pretty soon, you'll see their parade and party. we'll be back. ( music playing )

if toyota gets credit for being the most fuel efficient car company in america, well, then how do you explain all this? chevy malibu, cobalt, silverado, and the all-new equinox. compare them to anyone. may the best car win.

the baltimore harbor, hundreds and thousands of tons of road salt has arrived. each ship is bringing in 40,000 tons of salt that will go to road crews in maryland, virginia, and pennsylvania. for the last storm, left hundreds and thousands of people in the dark with power outages. the question is now, what are companies doing to prepare for the next storm. bob joins us live by phone. thanks for joining us.

>> thanks for having me. >> give us an update on the numbers. >> we have about 5,000 customers in montgomery county without service. our crews are out there. they are going to work through the night until it is deemed unsafe. and they have to come in, you know, high winds, you can't get the buckets up. not safe to work in them. they are there, they will work as long as they can until it's unsafe. >> what are you doing to reassure those 5,000 or so folks who may not be online by the time this next system really hits? that you haven't forgotten them. >> not at all. that's why i say, we are working and trying to get them back tonight. there are some that wouldn't be. you know, it depends on the weather from here on out now. >> are you concerned that all the work your crews have done up until now that disrupted by those winds? >> oh sure. it's going to be a treacherous situation in that a lot of

these evergreens are loaded with snow from the last storm and now they are going to have heavy wet snow piled on and that means these limbs are going to start coming down and entire trees coming down, and we could be back to square one, depending on what happens here tonight. >> you had a tough time getting into a lot of neighborhoods and you needed those road crews to make a way for your utility crews to get up. is that getting a little better? >> we've been cooperating and coordinating with the counties and the district of columbia. but there have been cases where our lineman had to carry in equipment and climb poles, because you couldn't get the bucket trucks in, so that has been a problem and complicated the situation. then you have some streets plowed, but very narrow and you can't maneuver around them. so, it complicates it, but you know, this is the hand we are dealt with and we are working as hard as we can. these guys are working 16 hour shifts. we have a loft office people

that are vital for this restoration, sleeping downtown tonight, so make sure they are at work tomorrow morning. >> we know it takes a village to get it all done, bob, they are all working as hard as they can. let's hope the winds don't do as much damage as anticipated. thanks so much. >> thank you. >> we know the snowstorms are taking a toll on crews trying to get the power lines up and the plows that are trying to clear two feet of snow already dumped on the district this past weekend. bruce johnson hit the streets today and it is tough out there. >> it's tough out there and you mention the salt coming in. they are already rationing salt out in dc because of the demand. lesli, the news comes as many residents complain. they are waiting for their streets to be cleared. we found some streets in the city still a mess and some were outright dangerous today. >> in far northeast dc, residents have all but given up on seeing their streets cleared of snow and ice. >> how are we going to get to

the main street if we drive? >> how bad is it out there? >> it's worse. it's terrible. >> we watch this group try to free a woman's van and better grab a shovel to help. >> well that didn't work, the group voted to try a different driver, me. we didn't spot a plow until we got to capitol hill where many of these streets were also a mess. >> how many hours you been out here? >> um, this is my fourth or fifth shift. 12 hours a piece. >> according to one broadcast report, 25% of the dc government snowplows are down n need of serious repair. there's concern about the drivers going down, because of the long hours they are putting in. >> dc officials admit trucks have been sent to the sidelines by the service and near record

snow. they say repairs are being made and vehicles returned to service. which brings us to the dc national guard. the guard is being called out to city police stations, to help during the snow emergency. >> we have a mission from the city to have humvees located at each of the police precincts, what they'll be doing is shuttling any personnel, fire, police, doctors, back and forth who are stuck in their homes. >> want to go back to those women. we had some fun helping them dig out. it's serious out there, because the kids are out of school. no free lunches for the kids and some of these women are pulling their resources. there are a number of women hoping that van got out because it's going to the store for a number of families. this is serious business. >> all jokes aside, i mean, you end up getting out there and helping people and it is about neighbors helping neighbors. we see this all across the area. >> all across the city, you know, people helping seniors navigate the ice. get to the safeway, get to the

giant, lifting kids up over mounds of snow. this is the time to get to know your neighbors. >> bruce, you have been all over the city. you get a good sense of how well the district is doing, you got to get out of northwest, don't you? do you need to get to the other quadrants of city and see how well this is doing? >> there's a number of people who aren't getting their streets plowed. close to western avenue. a number of streets dying for plows. capitol hill, where it is really flat, you wonder, where are the plows? the city is doing the best it can. the equipment is breaking down, nobody anticipated this much snow and a lot of this equipment isn't holding up and a lot of the workers aren't holding up also. you heard that guy say, this is his fourth or fifth 12 hour shift. a lot of time behind the wheel. they will make mistakes. >> they are operating machines, but they are people operating

the machines. all right, thanks, bruce. all right, our man who seems to be operating like the energizer bunny is topper shutt. >> our question for mr. johnson, bruce, in terms of this storm versus '06, is the district better or about the same? what do you think? >> i don't have a clue. >> okay fine, thanks for playing. winter headlines. prepare to lose electricity. you might as well be prepared. winds tonight, you are okay. 10 to 15. wednesday morning, 15 to 25 and gusty, and then in the afternoon, 20 to 40-mile an hour winds and that is going to be the signature of the storm. we'll get our fair share of snow. the winds will be the signature. satellite picture, radar combined, snow starting to fill in across the metro area. yes, we see a mixture and we'll talk about that. the area of low pressure in the carolinas and that will be the

coastal storm. that mixture, here is devon on the weather terrace. >> giving you a live look at what's going on in the northwest, the steady snow continues. if i can ask michael to follow me, show you what we accumulated, just a dusting, which is not really anything measurable. you can already see the snow beginning to accumulate and we'll see the snow building. live doppler 9 thownchts the 9,000. that's north of washington right now. go towards washington and parts of frederick county, we have steadier and heavier snows, already getting reports from our viewers sending in, there were some reports via wusa9.com, telling us a couple inches of snow. there was a heavier ban on the washington, frederick, and loudoun county, triangle area. that has since moved off northwest. this is the area of concern, we are watching closely. see that very big bright batch

of radar return off to the east in the right hand side of your picture there? that is coming in as sleet. i have towards leanardtown, sleet falling there. even toward laplata, we have a sleet, rain mix. as you go towards charles county, it turns to snow. as you head further south, that's where you see it turn to sleet. in northern virginia towards fredericksburg, that is also sleet going on there, too. we expect will probably see some of this sleet making its way further north. we'll have a huge impact on who gets more sleet and who gets more snow. for more on that, we'll send that to topper. >> that's why we have such a wide range of totals. overnight tonight, 2 to 6 inches. 2 inches down to the south. 6 inches to the north. and tomorrow morning, that's going to be our bulls eye. 3 to 6. if you are getting sleet tonight, tomorrow night, you will get the snow. that 3 to 6 covers everybody and it will see the snow taper off in the afternoon, 1 to 2

inches additionally. we are thinking 4 to 14 inches. 4 inches in st. mary's county, but 14 up toward howard county. all right, that's the way it will break down. here's our storm potential map. this is at our website. 6 to 12, general snowfall, 4 to 6, we are seeing that mix right now. in southern charles county, back into st. mary's and calvert and 2 to 4 south of that. there's the bulls eye as you go northeast of town, up towards howard county and points northeast maryland. tonight, snow, heavy by dawn, i mean, everywhere. even where you are seeing sleet. a mix south and east until 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning. 3 do 6 inches. 24 to 30 for lows and winds again, not a huge problem tonight. temperatures right now, around freezing. 32 in vienna, 33 upper marlboro. cooler to the west. 31 in hills borrow. to