A minimal snowstorm downplayed by forecasters turned into a major traffic disaster last night, as Montgomery County and the state of Maryland failed to pretreat roadways. The result? A six-car pileup in front of Pyle Middle School in Bethesda, dozens of fender benders, stuck and abandoned cars, drivers running out of gas on the Capital Beltway, and more than a few pedestrian wipeouts.
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Traffic on the Beltway
after midnight |
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"I'm sleeping on the couch at work," tweeted
Fresh 94.7 FM DJ Dana McKay
"Good lord what a cluster,"
@jose3030 tweeted |
By early this morning, the Beltway was in catastrophic shape, entirely shut down near the I-270 Spur in Bethesda. Drivers were pulling over to sleep in their cars, and Montgomery County Fire and Rescue spokesperson Pete Piringer reported that even fire vehicles were stuck in places for hours.
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Six-car Pyle-up by
Pyle Middle School |
Twitter user
Justin Fidler reported from the scene that there were no injuries in the 6-car "Pyle-up" in front of the school, but that Wilson Lane was closed in both directions as firefighters awaited the arrival of a salt truck.
Montgomery County's storm operations center announced it was activated - two hours after the storm hit and the chaos began. The County Department of Highway Services attempted to awaken members of the Montgomery County Council, who were asleep at the switch during the entire storm. Only Councilmembers Roger Berliner, Sid Katz and Nancy Navarro responded by retweeting the DHS message regarding current operations late Wednesday evening.
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MoCo Highway Services tries
to awaken Montgomery County
Councilmembers... |
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...who were largely asleep
at the switch during the storm |
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African-American mayors of
Washington take a lot of heat
for snow disasters; why don't white
leaders in MoCo get bad local press? |
Many drivers were asking what had gone wrong, and took to social media to rip local authorities for their negligence. The Montgomery County Civic Federation asked MoCo transportation officials why the County and State continue to be unable to coordinate snow operations within the County.
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| "Pitiful job!" in Bethesda |
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Rockville to Silver Spring in
3.5 hours |
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| Aspen Hill was "bad" |
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| "Not one plow" in Wheaton |
Failure to pretreat all state and most County roads not only created terrible driving conditions, but also made it difficult for snowplows and salt trucks to clear the hard sheet on roads by this morning's rush hour. In the worst-case scenario, remnants of this small storm could remain in many spots as a hard ice foundation, soon to be piled high with snow on top when Winter Storm Jonas arrives tomorrow.
Will anyone among Montgomery County's "leadership" be held accountable for the disastrous storm response, property damage and injuries? Not by the
Washington Post. The newspaper's
initial story on storm response is critical of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, but mysteriously passes on assigning similar blame to elected officials here in Montgomery County. Here we go again. The disasters will continue until there are consequences at the ballot box.
72 comments:
http://wapo.st/1S6uZG3
VA said they were worried temps were too cold and pretreatment would make it worse?
MD SHA says they based it on forecasts of not much snow.
Does DHS need council member authorization to take action? Otherwise what's the connection to "waking up" council members?
Were any of our county elected representatives in the command center last night? If not, where were they? Total lack of communication while constituents slept on the side of the highway.
4:33: It seems the Council was asleep at the switch during a major public safety crisis. While constituents were trapped on the roads, the Council was not engaged. No action, no communication.
Interestingly, the media is piling on the DC mayor, but haven't had a peep to say about Montgomery County elected officials. Wow - what's up with that?
4:55: They might have been being feted lavishly again by their sugar daddy Mitch Rales at his Potomac mansion. Trading posh parties for "the prestige of the Council" in a "quid pro quo" by which the Council might take another action in exchange for Rales' largess.
Bob McDonnell could have several new cellmates from Montgomery County if the Feds apply the same standard to the MoCo Council, Planning Board and school board.
It wasn't just MoCo, you birdbrain. The entire region was caught by surprise. Even private properties hadn't plowed or salted until midnight or later.
It's not much solace, but pretty much every local jurisdiction got it wrong-- DC, Moco, VA-- all ignored the possibility that there would be enough snow to cause problems on the road. Yeah, Moco should have done better, but they have a lot of company.
The question is: why were people caught by surprise? The forecast was known by late morning!
Why weren't trucks pre-treating MoCo main roads?
We'll never solve this or improve response if we ignore the problem.
@ 6:03 - Please explain how Montgomery County's situation was uniquely bad among local jurisdictions, outside of Dyer's fevered imagination.
Is MoCo Highway Services on the same planet as the rest of us?
They're still claiming they pretreated. Everyone actually on the roads in Bethesda last night disagree... vigorously.
Our range rovers handled the storm with grace and poise. We opted to leave the Tesla at home.
5:54: The apologist for the MoCo political cartel. Sorry, dude, it's just you, Hans Riemer and a few local media types against a mob of angry folks who just spent the night in their cars on the Beltway.
@ 6:26 AM - What you need is an autonomous Range Rover, with a plow affixed, driving 100 feet ahead of you driving in your Tesla on the nice, freshly plowed roadway.
Oh, excuse me... I used customary measures; how gauche. I meant to say "30 meters ahead".
Do you think that the folks who were stuck in their cars in DC or NoVa were any happier than those stuck on the roads of MoCo
6:44: We clearly had the worst response, but I thought MoCo was the best at everything? You seem to be off message, with that praise chorus message from local politicians and media being, "Everything is Awesome".
Own the disaster. The Montgomery County Council made us a national laughingstock this morning on the TV.
And where were our wise councilmembers during the storm?
Asleep at the switch, as the photos above show.
"The County Department of Highway Services attempted to awaken members of the Montgomery County Council, who were asleep at the switch during the entire storm. "
Huh? There's lots of blame to pass around the region, but obviously county councils in any of the regions aren't in any way involved in road treatment. You might as well blame Obama or the ghost of Ronald Reagan, for that matter. This is why no one takes you seriously, Dyer. Instead of just stating facts you try and twist things to fit your dumbass agenda.
What the other jurisdictions did is moot. Because other areas had the same problem doesn't make it right.
Our county had a horrible response and those involved should take the heat.
You should pace yourself and save some of your social media rage for the next couple of days - lots more snow coming.
My friend George Leventhal's re election slogan will be "make MoCo snow response bad again"
Or "our services will be no worse than DC or Fairfax"
7:28 (the troll 7:28, not the reasonable 7:28): Obama doesn't have direct oversight authority over snow operations in MoCo. The County Council DOES.
Most people's "agenda" was just to get home for dinner last night, when they ran into the buzzsaw of MoCo elected officials' incompetence.
Based on the social media rage, I'm in the vast majority, and you are pretty much by yourself in defending the Council in the fiasco that unfolded while they hid out somewhere.
7:40: After last night, any of those will sound more reasonable than "Government that works", that's for sure.
7:29: I don't need to pace myself, I'm not super-low-energy like the County Council. They don't have the energy or the stamina to do the job, as we found out once again last night. Where were they?
Breaking: DC's mayor apologizes for inadequate response last night.
Any word of similar apology from MoCo elected leaders?
How was MoCo the worst response? What did we do differently than any other jurisdiction?
Well it's not moot in the context of this blog because that's dyer's MO. It wouldn't be fair to compare to other jurisdictions all the time on economic development, airports, roads, Fortune 500 headquarters, etc. and then not compare for this individual instance.
"We clearly had the worst response, but I thought MoCo was the best at everything?"
Wow that's a blatant lie, but okay.
It would really be nice to get unbiased reporting that doesn't viciously attack the county FOR EVERY SINGLE THING, while at the same time glorifying Northern VA FOR EVERY SINGLE THING
"Well it's not moot in the context of this blog because that's dyer's MO. It wouldn't be fair to compare to other jurisdictions all the time on economic development, airports, roads, Fortune 500 headquarters, etc. and then not compare for this individual instance."
Haha seriously? Do you actually expect Mr. Dyer to be reasonable and balanced?
Robert "the sky is falling" Dyer gets hit by a snowflake and panics. You are nothing more than a whining little b*tch, who doesn't even pay property taxes, cause you live in mommy's basement, thinking up things to cry about. Get a JOB, a REAL LIFE, and quit your beeotching!
Really though, has Dyer EVER (and I mean EVER) talked about the Montgomery County govt with anything but invective, and Northern Virginia govt with anything but complements???
"Obama doesn't have direct oversight authority over snow operations in MoCo. The County Council DOES."
Incorrect. The County executive's office and the Maryland Governor, through MCDOT and SHA respectively, have direct authority over road treatment and snow removal. It's one thing to have an agenda and have extremist views and biases, but when you start making stuff up it's really getting out of hand.
2 simple questions: Why weren't MoCo roads pre treated and why weren't trucks out in force last night as conditions deteriorated?
"Why weren't MoCo roads pre treated and why weren't trucks out in force last night as conditions deteriorated?"
It was LESS THAN AN INCH OF SNOW. People just need to drive carefully. The pre-treatment option doesn't work in the type of weather yesterday. And you don't plow an inch of snow.
In spite of his claim to be a lifelong, multigenerational Montgomery County resident, he was actually born in Virginia.
He's a mole, I tells ya.
Salt and chemicals sure would have helped those folks stuck on main roads in Bethesda last night!
Zzzzz.... Bottom line...the roads were not treated even though by noon the forecast had called for more than flurries, wasn't there even some sort of advisory posted for winter weather until midnight?
@7:55AM - Pot. Kettle.
You KNOW I know that's true.
@8:12 I live in front of a major state road in Bethesda. I didn't notice any pre-treatment, which is fine, and I understand it's too little to plow, which is fine. However, the salt trucks didn't show up until around midnight -- many hours after the snow had stated. Once the salt truck went to work, the road was perfect. What I don't understand is why it took so long. Were they waiting for the stroke of midnight so the workers didn't go into overtime on Wednesday? That's my theory.
8:01: You're "making stuff up" to claim the Council doesn't have direct oversight authority over the executive branch. Also, Hogan has zero authority over snow removal on County roads.
My opinion is hardly extremist - did you read all of the tweets I posted from citizens above?
What did you just say and what does it have to do with not plowing or salting the roads yesterday?
I don't see either 7:28 as a troll. And the Obama thing seemed to be an analogy so you're misreading that it seems.
A person born at Sibley Hospital is still a lifelong County resident. You don't have "residence" in a hospital, knucklehead.
Dyer can you explain the chain of command for snow operations in Montgomery County? Would help clarify the situation.
@9:44am
You might want to do some research, most highways in Montgomery County are STATE HIGHWAYS, which are the jurisdiction of SHA, which is part of MDOT, which is an executive agency, which is under the direct authority of THE EXECUTIVE, which is THE GOVERNOR.
"the Council doesn't have direct oversight authority over the executive branch"
LOL. You really don't understand how govt. works
Dyer, I don't even know where to begin with all your dumbass, illogical replies. Do you honestly not understand why so many people tear you apart in every comments section of every one of these rants? Why not try a bit of introspection for a sec. Everyone agrees with the premise that the response to the snow was inadequate, yet you manage to turn everyone against you because your posts always go off on these dumbshit tangents that make no sense. You try to turn every hiccup into some reason to lynch the county council; you look petty, stupid, and childish and all you ever do is succeed in convincing people of the opposite viewpoint.
Folks, Suburban Hospital doesn't have labor and delivery. Majority of Bethesda residents have their children delivered in other cities and jurisdictions.
You're showing your ignorance if you think most Bethesda residents are born at home, at Suburban or perhaps the NIH? :)
I'd wager most Bethesda residents have their kids in DC hospitals like Sibley or Georgetown.
Now, let's get back to the MoCo snow debacle.
9:52 AM Pass the buck much?
"African-American mayors of
Washington take a lot of heat
for snow disasters; why don't white
leaders in MoCo get bad local press?"
Lol, wtf Dyer. Stupidest thing you've said since...well, yesterday.
life·long
ˈlīfˌlôNG/
adjective
adjective: lifelong; adjective: life-long
lasting or remaining in a particular state throughout a person's life.
So it seems if he lived in MoCo his entire life without any interruption then yes he would be considered a lifelong resident.
Agreed.
How is 9:52 passing the buck? He/she did a very good job of explaining the chain of command.
Isn't our county executive black?
What the heck does race have to do with anything in this conversation of snow response???
Exactly my point.
9:52: "LOL": You're the moron who doesn't understand how government works - What I wrote was exactly correct. Hogan has ZERO AUTHORITY over County roads. Period. He only controls state roads and interstate highways. Period.
And the County Council DOES have DIRECT OVERSIGHT AUTHORITY over the Executive branch. Period.
10:13: I'm sorry, but one Anonymous troll posting as several personalities doesn't qualify as "so many people."
No sensible person would be letting the Council and Executive off the hook on this.
Who made the call? Was it the executive or council?
So the council is ultimately responsible for everything that happens in MoCo. Sure we get that. But this decision wasn't the council's to make really. Maybe the council could help with policies and such moving forward, but it's hardly the council's direct responsibility to make a decision to plow the roads or lay salt is it?
Notice how 10:48 AM/Dyer's shill couldn't even wait two minutes to respond? LOL
@3:57 Dyer
Lol pathetic. Are you intentionally beihg obtuse? Maybe you should brush up on your 5th grade reading comprehension skills. How could you possibly take this statement to mean that Hogan has control over COUNTY roads?
"STATE HIGHWAYS, which are the jurisdiction of SHA, which is part of MDOT, which is an executive agency, which is under the direct authority of THE EXECUTIVE, which is THE GOVERNOR."
I live on Md 355. Not a grain of sand or salt was on it IN ADDITION TO COUNTY ROADS.
The recurring themes here are:
"Not my fault- blame the State of Maryland"
&
"Everyone else screwed up too. Leave us alone"
Are the elected officials in Fairfax as coddled by their local media as they are in MoCo?
Not a word on MyMCMedia or the Post about this debacle in MoCo. Did either ask even one *semi* tough question to Leggett today?
@9:43 PM SMH. Mantrum. Jcat.
"Not a word in the Post about this debacle"
€
You really should fact-check yourself from time to time.
Post editorial board: local jurisdictions 'dropped the ball'
@10:13, Dyer wiped the comment you're referencing. He's gone complete Hitler on us.
6:22: Have the Executive and Council apologized yet? Did the media that demanded an apology from the DC mayor ask MoCo leaders for an apology?
I'm glad they said "dropped the ball" at least somewhere; the front page used victimization language, "caught off guard". Kind of like saying they were caught off guard by the sun rising in the morning.
Good for Bowser.
But did NoVa officials apologize? Did PG County officials apologize? Did Hogan apologize?
Most importantly, did Dyer apologize for giving no warning at all to his readers about Wednesday night's storm?
@ 7:28 AM - At least four comments were disappeared in the wee hours of this morning.
Dyer is killing free speech and burying it in an unmarked grave.
That's a good point. Dyer blasts everyone for not doing anything in advance and the decisions that went into it. He has a public forum with a big readership. Why didn't he be responsible and warn folks too?
@ 8:46 AM - Dyer does not seem to realize that 20/20 Hindsight is a skill that one should list on one's resume.
S/b "...is NOT a skill..."
6:22 AM
The Post editorial says DC's mayor did the grown up thing and took responsibility.
It doesn't talk about MoCo's Council, but I assume they are saying that they are immature.
8:50 AM
"Hindsight" wasn't needed! The storm was forecast well in advance. Even if you ignored the forecast, the snow started hours before we reached a crisis point.
The question is why weren't resources mobilized? Where were our elected leaders during the crisis?
Look what we have here from the Sun:
"Hogan says he told his staff this morning he was disappointed in what happened on Md roads last night."
Of course, Dyer is going to ignore this because the repub. administration can do no wrong.
Why didn't MoCo's unelected fifth at-large candidate warn us of this dangerous storm, and properly mobilize resources?
The people of MoCo demand that he apologize for being such an irresponsible brat, or else face arrest.
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