Photo by Mary Early

The D.C. National Guard has been authorized to deploy 100 personnel and 30 vehicles to support District authorities, according to Major Earl Brown of the National Guard. However, officers have not yet been deployed.

What D.C. residents likely see now are the agency’s Humvees, says Mike Czin, a spokesperson from Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office. The vehicles are primarily at fire and D.C. Police stations, as well as at the District’s emergency operations center in Southeast.

The mayor’s office is “working very closely” with the National Guard if the need for additional resources arises, Czin says.

Earlier today, Christopher Geldart, the director of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency Director, emphasized the magnitude of this snow storm in terms of 2010’s “Snowmageddon.” That event was actually three separate storms, he said, whereas this “is all of Snowmageddon in a single day”—with the addition of 50 mile per hour winds.

“We’ll be fighting mother nature for more than 36 hours,” he added.

Meanwhile, Pepco is urging customers to prepare for days of power outages.