The Snowstorm Chronicles - More Post-Storm Scenes

More post-storm scenes from around Bowie.

Seen Sunday on Superior Lane

WELCOME
TO ANCHORAGE
POPULATION: STIR CRAZY

Crews continued to remove snow from Route 197 on Sunday near the Bowie Town Center. Most lanes on Route 197 in Bowie are now clear of snow.

Prices resumed falling at Walmart Sunday. The store closed Friday after the County declared the building unsafe due to fears that the heavy snow on the roof might cause a collapse. A crew with a crane worked to remove snow from the roof as customers shopped inside.

Workers take a break from removing snow from the Walmart roof.

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!

The Snowstorm Chronicles - The End

Although there is a chance for additional snowfall next week, we seem to be over with the big snowstorms in Bowie - for now. I hear a lot of people talk about the blizzards that hit Bowie this season, but I think technically the last storm was the only snowstorm that can be considered a blizzard. Schools have been closed all week, and the Federal government was closed for an unprecedented four days.

I can't believe that we didn't lose power during the blizzard, and I think kudos should be given to BGE and all involved in the Bowie Electric Reliability Action Plan (BERAP).

The blowing and drifting snow made it tough to take an accurate measurement of the snow from the blizzard . This measurement of 8 inches seemed to be the average.

Our street was continuously plowed throughout the last storm, and we woke up Thursday morning with a clear street.

Many residential streets in Bowie were down to bare pavement after a day in the sun. Pictured here is Woodhaven Lane.

Some residential streets in Bowie could be better. This is a picture from Kitmore Lane.

Some sections of Belair Drive could use a little more work. Birds are using this slushy puddle as a birdbath. The section between Annapolis Road and Kenhill Drive was in rough shape.

Kenhill Drive is in great shape.

Visibility at some intersections is blocked by snowbanks. Here is the view looking right on Old Chapel Road from Woodhaven Lane.

The condition of County roads in Bowie was much better from their pre-blizzard state. Old Chapel Road was down to bare pavement in most spots, with an occasional spot of snow.

State roads in Bowie seem to be down to bare pavement as well, but you still have to be careful of the disappearing lane syndrome. You can see in this photo on Route 450 East that the right lane suddenly disappears in front of the library.

I took this "baseline" shot of the picnic table in our backyard around 5:00pm Friday evening, February 5th - before the last two storms.

And here is the picture of our picnic table after the most recent storm. A total of 33.5 inches of snow fell in the six days between the the time that I took the first and last photos.

The Snowstorm Chronicles - Monday Morning on the Roads

I got my car back on the road Monday morning to run some errands and to possibly head to work in Tysons Corner. I found State and County roads to be the in the worst condition, and City of Bowie roads to be in the best condition. I was surprised to see the state of Laurel Bowie Road (Rt 197) and Old Chapel Road. I assumed that the major roads would be in the best shape, but that's not what I saw. I've heard that a lot of the county and state roads are plowed by contractors, and if they aren't properly supervised, some of them will not put their plows all the way down for fear of damaging their equipment. I captured a picture showing a contractor on Route 197 without his plow down during the the January 30th storm. Click here to see that post.

Laurel Bowie Road (Route 197) Near the Post Office

Old Chapel Road near Whitehall Elementary School

Woodhaven Lane, a residential street in Bowie, is plowed down to the pavement.

There is still a lot of plowing to do at Bowie Plaza. This Bobcat wasn't running when I saw it.

The Free State Shopping Center parking lot was in great shape, but the mounds of snow took up quite a few parking spots.

The Sunoco parking lot at the corner of Old Chapel Road and Laurel Bowie Road could be in better shape. Notice the snow on Old Chapel Road at the bottom of the picture.

Our street appears to be in the worst condition of all of the residential streets that I saw. Hopefully the City will take care of this today.

Late January Snowfall in Bowie

Snow started falling heavily around 9:00 this morning in Bowie, and there was about five inches of the white stuff on the ground by 7:00pm.

I stopped by Best Buy at the Bowie Town Center, and it was the first time I found parking in front and no line at the register. I almost didn't recognize the place.

The snow-covered Bowie bushes

Old Chapel Road. The roads were very slippery.

Snow plow on Route 197 in front of Benjamin Tasker Middle School. The blade works better when it's down.

City of Bowie plow on Mitchellville Road - with the blade down.

An accident on Laurel Bowie Road (Rt 197) at Old Chapel Road. Apparently car(s) coming down the hill on Old Chapel Road couldn't stop in time.

Four Bowie Police officers work the scene.

The view from the top of the hill on Old Chapel Road

Police closed off Old Chapel Road at Laurel Bowie Road

Emerald Ash Borer

I came across this bumper sticker on a car back in August. You can kind of guess what it's about, but I didn't know the details.

The Emerald Ash Borer is a beetle that originated in Asia, and it was first discovered in the United States in Michigan in 2002. The beetle harmlessly eats ash tree leafs, but the beetle larvae kill ash trees by eating the inner bark. To date, millions of ash trees have been killed in the United States, and millions of dollars have been spent on eradicating the Emerald Ash Borer.

The State of Maryland reports that Prince George's County is the only Maryland county to be affected so far. The problem was discovered at a single nursery in 2003. Eradication efforts were attempted, but later tests revealed that they were not completely successful. I heard that every bill of sale at the nursery was reviewed to find the destinations of trees that were possibly infected, and eradication experts visited those destinations to destroy trees. A quarantine order was issued to prohibit anyone from moving ash trees, ash firewood and ash wood products.

Emerald Ash Borer traps can be seen throughout Bowie.

I spotted this trap in a tree along Belair Drive.

Here is another picture of the same tree.

This notice is stapled to the tree.