The Snowstorm Chronicles - The Aftermath

I gave yesterday's blog post a title of The Snowstorm Chronicles - The End. That was 50% wishful thinking on my part and 50% being afraid of going overboard on the snowstorm coverage. However, the story continues.

Most people went back to work Friday, but the roads still weren't in good shape. People had miserable commutes going to and from work. Many side streets are just wide enough for one car, and State roads continue to suffer from missing lanes and disappearing lanes. Travel on the highways is generally good, although I did get stuck in traffic Friday morning when the right lane of the Inner Loop of the Beltway in Virginia disappeared for about a mile near Route 50.

The Bowie Walmart was closed sometime Friday after the County declared the building unsafe due to possible structural problems with the roof. There were reports of the roof sagging due to the heavy snow. The store was still closed as of 1:30pm on Saturday the 13th. I overheard a rumor that the roof collapsed, but people were working inside the building Saturday afternoon, and I saw no evidence of a collapse.



The following Twitter tweets were published by Mark Brady, Public Information Officer for Prince George's County Fire/EMS Department on his Twitter page:

Friday, February 12th

• 1:10pm: Bowie Wal-Mart evacuated while PGFD checks on a sagging roof.
• 1:26pm: Bowie Wal-Mart is purely precautionary. No imminent danger of roof collapse. Purely precautionary.
• 1:32pm: Bowie Wal Mart has a water leak issue - no collapse issues at this time. PGFD units are going home - shopping to resume shortly.
• 7:16pm: Bowie and Capital Plaza Wal-Marts experience roof problems due to snow overload. Call before you go Saturday to make sure they are open

UPDATE: Walmart open on February 14th

Sign posted on one of the doors at the Bowie Walmart.

The Best Buy in Bowie remained open Saturday while a crew cleared snow from the roof.

A worker removes snow from the roof of the Best Buy in Bowie.

Route 450 West at Route 193 on Saturday morning. The right lane is not plowed.

Old Route 450 between Church Road and Route 197 on Saturday morning. The right lane is only half plowed.

Crews work to open more lanes of traffic at the intersection of Route 197, Kenhill Drive and Loudon Lane.

Traffic creeps along Route 197 South approaching Mitchellville Road due to snow clogged lanes and a malfunctioning traffic light. Drivers waiting to turn left onto Mitchellville Road weren't getting a green light Saturday afternoon.

A Prince George's County plow clears snow in the Woodmore North neighborhood Saturday morning.

A plow removes snow from the parking lot at Benjamin Tasker Middle School Friday morning. Kenilworth Elementary School and Benjamin Tasker Middle School were cleared of snow by Friday afternoon. The parking lot at Whitehall Elementary School remained snow covered Saturday morning.

The Allotta family staged this "accident scene" at their home on Stoneybrook Drive. That's Allotta fun!