Hundreds of drivers were stranded on I-95 in northern Virginia for hours Tuesday morning after the region was slammed with a major snowstorm – prompting some people to turn off their engines or even abandon their vehicles to look for shelter, according to a report. (Dalet)
WTOP reported that some drivers have been in their car for over 15 hours. (Dalet)
Snow spotters for the National Weather Service reported accumulations of 11.5 inches in the D.C. suburb of Capitol Heights, Maryland, and 10 inches in Rose Hill, Virginia. (Dalet)
The Virginia Department of Transportation was warning motorists to avoid travel on I-95 until lanes reopen and congestion clears. (Dalet)
Interstate 95 in Virginia was closed northbound and southbound from Dumfries (Exit 152) to Carmel Church (Exit 104). (Dalet)
Reports as of 5 a.m. Tuesday said the southbound lanes near mile marker 136 remained at a standstill. (Dalet)
"I've never seen anything like this," a truck driver told NBC Washington. (Dalet)
"Crews will work 24/7 until ALL state-maintained roads are safe for travel," the Virginia Department of Transportation tweeted. (Dalet)
The situation unfolding in Northern Virginia comes after a winter storm dumped up to a foot of snow and toppled trees across the Fredericksburg region Monday. (Dalet)
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., revealed Tuesday that he was stuck for 19 hours and counting in the I-95 disaster that stranded hundreds of travelers outside the nation's capital. (Dalet)
Sen. Time Kaine, D-Va., tweeted that he started his "normal 2-hour drive to DC at 1pm yesterday," and that "19 hours later, I'm still not near the Capitol." (Dalet)
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said his team had been working "throughout the night" alongside other agencies in hopes of getting traffic on icy roads moving again. (Dalet)
"This is unprecedented, and we continue to steadily move stopped trucks to make progress toward restoring lanes," said an engineer with the Virginia Department of Transportation. (Dalet)
The "interstate is absolutely littered with disabled vehicles," an NBC News reporter said in a Twitter thread. "Not just cars. Semis, everything. Nobody can move." (Dalet)
"People are running out of gas or abandoning vehicles," an NBC news reporter said in a Twitter thread. (Dalet)