Photo by kimberlyfaye

In case you haven’t notice, certain doom has hit the D.C. area in the form of white, powdery snow. So far we’ve gotten about three or four inches, but the forecast says that number may double as the snow is expected to continue until around 11 p.m. tonight. To make matters worse, a major cold front—that is not actually a polar vortex, but rather a result of it—is set to sweep the area, bringing temperatures down to the teens until the weekend.

Don’t worry though, because D.C. is more than prepared for whatever icy, snowy nightmare the weather has in store for us. At a press briefing this afternoon, Mayor Vince Gray assured the media that the Department of Public Works, the District Department of Transportation, and the Department of Health have all prepared for today’s snowstorm. “This is the first major snowstorm we’ve had in three years,” Gray said. “We actually have rehearsals that are done in preparation for situations like this.” The last one was in November he said.

Earlier this weekend, the Department of Public Works started pre-treating roads and sidewalks for the impending snow, and snow plows were deployed as early as 6 a.m. this morning, hours before any snowflake actually hit the streets of D.C. DPW director William Howland, Jr. said that they haven’t implemented a snow emergency and “don’t anticipate” recommending one to the mayor if the current projections are accurate. The only major precaution they’re implementing is a rush hour parking enforcement, meaning cars parked on the street downtown from 4 p.m. to 6:40 p.m. could get ticketed.

D.C.’s Snow Command Center is ON IT! Photo by Matt Cohen.

But most importantly, Gray emphasized that they’re taking extra measures to ensure D.C.’s homeless population is well taken care of. Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Paul Quander Jr. said that D.C. has opened up three emergency shelters—at the Kennedy Recreation Center, Columbia Heights Recreation Center, and the Banneker Recreation Center—for homeless residents to take shelter in during the cold. Additionally, the city has turned several Metro buses into “warming stations.” They’re located at 5th and C streets NW, outside of Union Station, 17th and H streets NW, 23rd and L streets NW, and 27th and K streets NW.

While there were reports of the hypothermia hotline being overwhelmed during the last cold blast a few weeks ago, Gray said that people can also call 311 to report a homeless resident outside in the cold.

Although Mayor Gray and the D.C. government announced school and city government closings last night—well ahead of today’s storm—he said that they haven’t made a decision about tomorrow just yet. They should make a decision by 10 or 11 p.m. tonight, Gray said.