Gov. Hogan Urges Readiness For Significant Winter Storm

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — Gov. Larry Hogan is urging Marylanders to prepare for "a significant winter storm event," and not to take this lightly.

The challenge is going to be the wide variety of conditions possible in the state. We could have rain, that could freeze on the Eastern Shore. Heavy snow is possible in Frederick and Carroll counties, with possibly significant snow in Baltimore, and to the west.

Maryland is bracing for the first significant winter storm of the year. State highway crews have been pretreating the roads for the mess to come.

"Some people are sort of lulled into a false sense of security because we've had this great 70 degree weather," said Gov. Hogan. "And I think everybody thinks it's springtime and ready to put on some flip flops and go barbecue in the backyard. This is a serious winter storm. It's obviously going to be the biggest event we've had this season, and people need to be prepared and need to be safe."

Maryland has seen its share of snowstorms in March, but few have packed double digit inches of snowfall, like in 1993.

At work, we were already putting away the salt and the plow, and everything else. We were ready to call it quits," said one resident. "Just last week, I was jogging in shorts and a t-shirt, it was 70-something degrees.

There's a rush to get out at BWI-Thurgood-Marshall Airport. The major carrier, Southwest is allowing passengers to change departures without fees.

Maryland state troopers are being reassigned to help with the storm.

"This is so we'll have adequate numbers of troopers out there, ready to respond to additional calls for service, for people who may become stranded, disabled or traffic crashes across the state," said Greg Shipley, with Maryland State Police.

A late winter blast, that could have a major impact.

It's going to vary widely. We may have some places on the Eastern Shore and southern Maryland where we get rain," said Hogan. "Annapolis, Baltimore City, Frederick, Carroll County, are going to expect some significant impacts.

There are some worries the rain could wash away the pretreatment on the roads, but authorities across the state say they're prepared.

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