Winter Storm: Update 1

I awoke this morning with snow already falling. I went about my business for the next few hours. I had no need to leave the house. I heard a snowplow going up a nearby street. I didn’t look out the window, but the sound of a snowplow scraping the street is unmistakable.

My own street has not been plowed, nor has salt and sand been put down. A small white car travels slowly past my house. Two men in dark clothing run behind it. I’m guessing they had just pushed the car to get it moving on the slick street, and they told the driver to go slowly and they would catch up to the car, but “don’t stop moving!” Good advice.

A short while later, I look outside and see a small dark-gray Nissan SUV stuck in the middle of the street in front of my house. A man is trying to shovel snow away from the front wheels while a woman looks on, but under the snow there is ice and a snow shovel is useless against ice. A few minutes later I look outside and see the driver trying to move the vehicle forward, but the front wheels spin and the vehicle turns sideways in the street.

Another few minutes pass and I look outside again. Now the SUV is against the curb in front of my house. There is no hope of getting the vehicle out of this situation. Maybe the driver will learn a lesson about driving in snow in a 2WD vehicle. Eventually they abandon the vehicle and begin walking down the street.

This little misadventure is being repeated thousands of times on roads around central Virginia. Cars have slid off roads and are stuck in ditches or perhaps are stopped by a tree. Authorities always advise people to not go out when the roads are bad. But, of course, there are always people who think, “They don’t mean me” or “I can handle it.”

It’s dark now. It’s 7PM and snow is still falling hard. Somewhere nearby I hear the roar of an engine and the whine of tires on ice and I know a car is stuck. I learned my lesson long ago. That’s why my vehicle has 4WD. Even so, I’m going to keep it in the garage until I have to use it. We all live and learn. It just takes some people longer than others.