Photo: Uncredited/AP/ShutterstockAfter a hellish traffic jam worsened withwinter weatherandtrapped some driversin their cars for over 24 hours, I-95 in Virginia reopened Tuesday night.At 8:40 p.m. Tuesday, the Virginia Department of Transportationannouncedthat all disabled vehicles had finally been removed from the major highway. Though the road is reopened, unnecessary travel in and around the Fredericksburg area — which sits between Richmond, Virginia and Washington, D.C. — is discouraged amid slick, severe conditions, perVDOT.The trouble began Monday morning when a truck jackknifed, sending other cars out of control, theAssociated Pressreported. From there, lanes in both directions got blocked over a 40-mile stretch between Richmond and Washington, D.C. as snow fell “around 2 inches an hour.“Though no injuries or deaths have been reported as of Wednesday morning, perWTOP, the havoc was traumatic for the hundreds of motorists who got stuck as over a foot of snow fell over the Fredericksburg area. Many were stranded without food or water as temperatures dropped, struggling to stay warm overnight.Steve Helber/AP/Shutterstock"No one came. It was just shocking,” Meera Rao, who got caught in the gridlock for over 16 hours, told the AP. “Being in the most advanced country in the world, no one knew how to even clear one lane for all of us to get out of that mess?“Virginia Sen.Tim Kainewas among the drivers stuck in the standstill, which he wrote at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday had lasted 27 hours. Kaine was on the road to work in Washington, tellingCNN, he said that “at some point it switched from a miserable travel day into kind of a survival mode day for me.“Katie Stuntz Twitter"The roads are incredibly slick, and my car is sliding around and I don’t have food or drink in my car, so I was more focused on, ‘Okay, how do I safely get out of this mess?’ " Kaine said. Later Tuesday, hetweetedthat he was “very happy to be back in the Capitol” to address voting rights legislation.Susan Phalen also set out Monday for what should have been a quick trip from Fredericksburg to Alexandria after losing power and cell service at her home.“Because I didn’t have cell phone or internet connection at the house in Fredericksburg, I wasn’t able to see this nightmare I was walking into until I was smack dab in the middle of it, and then it was too late,” Phalen, who was trapped in the chaotic congestion for over 15 hours, toldCNN.Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesAs emergency crews continue to clear the local roads, many are berating Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam for not calling in the National Guard to back up first responders. According to WTOP, Northam told reporters that local authorities along I-95 didn’t reach out, and that the National Guard couldn’t have provided an “immediate solution” if they tried.“Remember that our guard members have day jobs,” the governor said. “In fact, as you all remember last Jan. 6, we sent the National Guard to help at the Capitol after the insurrection, but it was the next day before they were able to arrive.”
Photo: Uncredited/AP/Shutterstock
After a hellish traffic jam worsened withwinter weatherandtrapped some driversin their cars for over 24 hours, I-95 in Virginia reopened Tuesday night.At 8:40 p.m. Tuesday, the Virginia Department of Transportationannouncedthat all disabled vehicles had finally been removed from the major highway. Though the road is reopened, unnecessary travel in and around the Fredericksburg area — which sits between Richmond, Virginia and Washington, D.C. — is discouraged amid slick, severe conditions, perVDOT.The trouble began Monday morning when a truck jackknifed, sending other cars out of control, theAssociated Pressreported. From there, lanes in both directions got blocked over a 40-mile stretch between Richmond and Washington, D.C. as snow fell “around 2 inches an hour.“Though no injuries or deaths have been reported as of Wednesday morning, perWTOP, the havoc was traumatic for the hundreds of motorists who got stuck as over a foot of snow fell over the Fredericksburg area. Many were stranded without food or water as temperatures dropped, struggling to stay warm overnight.Steve Helber/AP/Shutterstock"No one came. It was just shocking,” Meera Rao, who got caught in the gridlock for over 16 hours, told the AP. “Being in the most advanced country in the world, no one knew how to even clear one lane for all of us to get out of that mess?“Virginia Sen.Tim Kainewas among the drivers stuck in the standstill, which he wrote at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday had lasted 27 hours. Kaine was on the road to work in Washington, tellingCNN, he said that “at some point it switched from a miserable travel day into kind of a survival mode day for me.“Katie Stuntz Twitter"The roads are incredibly slick, and my car is sliding around and I don’t have food or drink in my car, so I was more focused on, ‘Okay, how do I safely get out of this mess?’ " Kaine said. Later Tuesday, hetweetedthat he was “very happy to be back in the Capitol” to address voting rights legislation.Susan Phalen also set out Monday for what should have been a quick trip from Fredericksburg to Alexandria after losing power and cell service at her home.“Because I didn’t have cell phone or internet connection at the house in Fredericksburg, I wasn’t able to see this nightmare I was walking into until I was smack dab in the middle of it, and then it was too late,” Phalen, who was trapped in the chaotic congestion for over 15 hours, toldCNN.Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesAs emergency crews continue to clear the local roads, many are berating Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam for not calling in the National Guard to back up first responders. According to WTOP, Northam told reporters that local authorities along I-95 didn’t reach out, and that the National Guard couldn’t have provided an “immediate solution” if they tried.“Remember that our guard members have day jobs,” the governor said. “In fact, as you all remember last Jan. 6, we sent the National Guard to help at the Capitol after the insurrection, but it was the next day before they were able to arrive.”
After a hellish traffic jam worsened withwinter weatherandtrapped some driversin their cars for over 24 hours, I-95 in Virginia reopened Tuesday night.
At 8:40 p.m. Tuesday, the Virginia Department of Transportationannouncedthat all disabled vehicles had finally been removed from the major highway. Though the road is reopened, unnecessary travel in and around the Fredericksburg area — which sits between Richmond, Virginia and Washington, D.C. — is discouraged amid slick, severe conditions, perVDOT.
The trouble began Monday morning when a truck jackknifed, sending other cars out of control, theAssociated Pressreported. From there, lanes in both directions got blocked over a 40-mile stretch between Richmond and Washington, D.C. as snow fell “around 2 inches an hour.”
Though no injuries or deaths have been reported as of Wednesday morning, perWTOP, the havoc was traumatic for the hundreds of motorists who got stuck as over a foot of snow fell over the Fredericksburg area. Many were stranded without food or water as temperatures dropped, struggling to stay warm overnight.
Steve Helber/AP/Shutterstock
“No one came. It was just shocking,” Meera Rao, who got caught in the gridlock for over 16 hours, told the AP. “Being in the most advanced country in the world, no one knew how to even clear one lane for all of us to get out of that mess?”
Virginia Sen.Tim Kainewas among the drivers stuck in the standstill, which he wrote at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday had lasted 27 hours. Kaine was on the road to work in Washington, tellingCNN, he said that “at some point it switched from a miserable travel day into kind of a survival mode day for me.”
Katie Stuntz Twitter
“The roads are incredibly slick, and my car is sliding around and I don’t have food or drink in my car, so I was more focused on, ‘Okay, how do I safely get out of this mess?’ " Kaine said. Later Tuesday, hetweetedthat he was “very happy to be back in the Capitol” to address voting rights legislation.
Susan Phalen also set out Monday for what should have been a quick trip from Fredericksburg to Alexandria after losing power and cell service at her home.
“Because I didn’t have cell phone or internet connection at the house in Fredericksburg, I wasn’t able to see this nightmare I was walking into until I was smack dab in the middle of it, and then it was too late,” Phalen, who was trapped in the chaotic congestion for over 15 hours, toldCNN.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
As emergency crews continue to clear the local roads, many are berating Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam for not calling in the National Guard to back up first responders. According to WTOP, Northam told reporters that local authorities along I-95 didn’t reach out, and that the National Guard couldn’t have provided an “immediate solution” if they tried.
“Remember that our guard members have day jobs,” the governor said. “In fact, as you all remember last Jan. 6, we sent the National Guard to help at the Capitol after the insurrection, but it was the next day before they were able to arrive.”
source: people.com
