Wednesday's wet, heavy snow is posing a threat to power lines and tree branches, and power outages were already being reported in the morning.
As of 7:30 p.m., the following power outages remained:
- Dominion Virginia said 13,798 customers in northern Virginia were without power. In the Shenandoah Valley, that number was 49,982.
- NOVEC had 2,194 customers without power in Loudoun, Fauquier, Prince William, Fairfax and Stafford counties about 6 p.m.
- Rappahannock Electric Cooperative had 5,913 outages in Spotsylvania County, 2,673 in Culpeper County and 1,961 in Fauquier County.
- Pepco reported 35 outages in Montgomery County.
- BGE reported 44 outages in Anne Arundel County.
Winds of up to 50 mph are expected Wednesday evening, which could cause new outages, though Storm Team 4 Chief Meteorologist Doug Kammerer did not expect them to be widespread.
In advance of the storm, Pepco requested more than 300 mutual assistance personnel from out of state to join the utility's 450 overhead line contractors and 300 tree contractors in trimming and restoration work. Crews from Alabama and Georgia began arriving Tuesday.
"We are preparing for the possibility of widespread outages and we ask our customers to prepare now as well," Pepco President Thomas H. Graham said Tuesday.
Dominion Virginia Power alerted out-of-state utilities it might require help. The utility also mobilized crews to the Interstate 81 corridor Tuesday, the Associated Press reported. Out-of-area personnel had packed motels in Warrenton as of Wednesday morning.
"We expect [the storm]'s going to have a pretty profound impact on the western and northwestern part of the state, so we've already begun sending crews from areas least likely to be affected so that they can be in position before the storm arrives," Dominion spokesman Karl Neddenien said Tuesday. "We're going to do what it takes to get ready for the storm to keep the lights on and, when outages occur, to get them on as quick as we can."
BG&E made an initial request for an extra 500 utility workers and will monitor the situation to determine if they need more.
TO REPORT OUTAGES:
- BG&E: 877-778-2222 or online here
- Dominion Virginia: 866-DOM-HELP (866-366-4357) or online here
- NOVEC: 888-335-0500 or online here
- Pepco: 877-737-2662, online here or via mobile app
- Potomac Edison: 1-888-LIGHTSS (1-888-544-4877)