Photo by OlivierJD.

With most of the Deep South currently under a blanket of snow — those trying to get from Washington to Atlanta anytime soon might want to look into getting someplace to spend the night — there’s yet another round of speculation today: how hard will Washington get hit? The answer, as has been the case for every other threat of accumulation this season, is that no one’s really sure.

A Winter Storm Watch (which means that a “significant winter weather is expected”) has been declared for several counties areas around the District, but it looks like the city itself could have the same fate it experienced when the last big storm, on Christmas weekend, plowed through the region — that is, the snow might skirt right around D.C. As of this moment, there has been a Winter Storm Watch issued for Charles, St. Mary’s, Calvert, Prince George’s, Anne Arundel, Howard, Carroll and even Baltimore Counties — but D.C. only has a Hazardous Weather Outlook in effect.

NBCWashington.com states that the storm, which will finish battering the south and arrive here tomorrow afternoon, could bring “between 2-4 inches” of snow and sleet on Tuesday, while TBD is predicting “2.5 to 5 inches,” and Capital Weather Gang is forecasting a “light to moderate snow event with 1-4″ most likely.” But forecasts also show that the storm might just fly off to the east on its way to New York and New England. Either way, Washingtonians who are hoping for the year’s first snowpocalypse will likely be disappointed.