Prince Frederick, MD – The dreaded “first full day of spring” snow storm may have been late in getting started, but authorities throughout the state in general and Southern Maryland in particular, seemed prepared. Additional road crews and patrol continue to work in the heavy snowfall.
“Thank you for not taking a snow day,” wrote one poster to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.
“We are ready to roll,” said Calvert County Department of Public Works Director Rai Sharma Tuesday evening, March 20. Sharma stated that in addition to personnel operating the county’s snow plowing and salt-spreading vehicles, several contractors were lined up to make all roads passable. Of course the Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) was prepped for the pushing and scraping on the Free State’s roadways. The SHA reported Tuesday it had “900-plus personnel and over 2,300 pieces of equipment on the road.”
By 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, the Charles County Sheriff’s Office reported the county’s 911 center had dispatched officers to over 13 crashes in the period of one hour. Around 10 a.m. Calvert County authorities had to temporarily close Route 4 and Dunleigh Drive in Dunkirk due to poor road conditions that had resulted in several motor vehicle crashes.
Just before 11 a.m. the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office asked motorists to stay off the roads due to deteriorating conditions. St. Mary’s authorities also reported several crashes.
Statewide, the Maryland State Police reported that the two days of nasty weather—Tuesday’s cold, persistent rain and Wednesday’s heavy wet snow—had resulted in well over 400 motor vehicle crashes and nearly 170 disabled vehicles.
Snow totals vary throughout the region, As of 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, 5 inches of snow had fallen in Hollywood, about 4 inches in Prince Frederick, around 6 inches in Dunkirk, 4 inches in Huntingtown and 5.5 inches in Hughesville.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com