After a week full of flight cancellations and a record increase in COVID-19 cases in the United States, a snowfall on Monday worsened the chaos in transportation and forced the closure of federal services and schools in Washington and the surrounding area.
Yesterday Washington seemed like a picture: snowflakes covered the city with a white blanket and the most emblematic monuments and buildings, such as the dome of the Capitol and the White House.
It is expected that between 12 and more than 25 cm of snow will fall on the capital, warned the US meteorological services, which placed Washington and the neighboring state of Virginia under a winter storm alert until 4:00 p.m. (9:00 p.m. GMT).
The winter storm that hits much of the east coast of the United States, with strong winds accompanied by snowfall, could cause “snow storms” and “floods,” said meteorological services.
At least 395,000 homes were without power in Virginia and 67,000 in Maryland, with trees toppling over utility poles under the weight of the snow.
Yesterday, Monday morning, the government announced the closure of federal services in the city of Washington, thus canceling the daily White House press conference and the only vote of the day scheduled in the Senate, postponed to Tuesday. .
The city of Washington also ordered a stop to the circulation of buses and the closure of test centers for covid-19, as well as the suspension of the distribution of rapid detection tests.
Many colleges also closed Monday in the Washington, Maryland and Virginia area.
“If it is not absolutely necessary that you go out, stay home and do not go by car,” urged the mayor of Washington, Muriel Bowser, at a press conference. Many vehicles are stuck on the road by snow.
President Joe Biden himself suffered the consequences of the storm upon his return to the capital after a few days of vacation in Delaware.
Air Force One was stranded for 30 minutes on the runway while personnel cleared the snow; later the presidential convoy took considerably longer than usual to reach the White House.
.