Photo by Lorie Shaull

Jonas hits the D.C. region with sharp winds and snowfall accumulating at about two feet, with a couple more inches still to come. The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning with the following predictions:

This Afternoon. Snow. The snow could be heavy at times. Widespread blowing snow. High near 29. Blustery, with a north wind around 24 mph, with gusts as high as 37 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 3 to 7 inches possible.

Tonight. Snow, mainly before midnight. The snow could be heavy at times. Widespread blowing snow, mainly before midnight. Low around 20. Blustery, with a north wind 16 to 25 mph, with gusts as high as 38 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Sunday. Areas of blowing snow before noon. Sunny, with a high near 31. Northwest wind 8 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.

According to The Washington Post, the District met blizzard criteria with three straight hours with winds gusting over 35 mph, visibility of 0.25 miles or less and snow and blowing snow.”

At 5 p.m., National Airport, D.C.’s reporting station, observed heavy snow, winds gusting to 37 mph, and visibility of 0.06 miles,” The Post reported. D.C.’s official snowfall total at the time was 17.5 inches “which puts it ahead of the Blizzard of 1996 and into 5th place among the top 10 greatest storms. Just 0.3 inches need to fall for it to pass Snowmageddon.”

After snow accumulated more than two feet in the region and wind began toppling trees into powerlines, Pepco Vice President Michael Maxwell told The Post that every customer “should be prepared for the possibility of losing power.”

The region’s first reported casualty of the snowstorm was a resident of Fort Washington, Md., who suffered a heart attack while shoveling snow.