Winter Hits in a Burst of White

Farther out, the Associated Press reported that a Barboursville, Va., woman was killed on Interstate 81 near Winchester, when the southbound vehicle in which she was a passenger lost control on the icy road, crossed the median and hit another vehicle headed north.

In Virginia, the ramp between Interstates 495 north and 66 west was shut down because of icy conditions, and Route 1 between Backlick Road and Fort Belvoir was closed from 3 to 5 p.m. One dispatcher working the phones in Northern Virginia said cars were "sliding around like hockey pucks. . . . There have been more accidents than they have police officers."

"People just don't know how to drive," said Maryland State Police spokesman John McDonough.

Forecasters said today would be overcast, with temperatures in the 40s. Another cold front could bring more rain Wednesday or Thursday with the possibility of snow or sleet.

At Reagan National Airport, Tom Gormley of Arlington said his Atlanta-bound Delta Air Lines flight, scheduled for 5 p.m., was held at the gate with passengers on board for more than four hours waiting to be de-iced.

An airline spokesman said Delta went into "de-icing mode" at National about 5 p.m. and canceled eight flights because of "deteriorating conditions."

He said the Atlanta flight was canceled about 10:30 p.m. after crew members had "timed out," or exceeded permitted work hours. While waiting, he said, passengers had been allowed to leave the airplane.

A spokeswoman for Metro said the agency expected to provide normal service this morning. Some bus detours were possible, depending on conditions, spokeswoman Joanne Ferreira said.

The late first snow is not a new phenomenon, meteorologists said. The first snow of the season has come after Jan. 1 "every eight to 10 years" over the past century, said Steve Rogowski, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

"But recently, it's happened more," he said, with the first measurable snow coming in January in 2000, 2002 and 2007.

David Buck, a spokesman for the Maryland State Highway Administration, said that despite the mayhem that accompanied yesterday's storm, things could have been worse had it been a weekday.

Officials in the District, Maryland and Virginia were prepared for the weather. By 8 a.m., District officials had more than 140 trucks mobilized to pre-treat roads with de-icing solution and salt. In Maryland, state transportation officials had 1,100 workers activated. In Virginia, state transportation officials had 250 trucks out.