ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, January 8, 1996 TAG: 9601080029
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: ELISSA MILENKY AND BETTY HAYDEN STAFF WRITERS
note: lede
It may not have qualified as a blizzard, but the snowstorm that blanketed Southwest Virginia and the rest of the state over the weekend earned a place in the weather record books.
Roanoke surpassed its mark for the most snowfall in a 24-hour period with the 22.2 inches that fell between 1 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday, the National Weather Service said. The previous record was set in February 1983, when 18.4 inches fell in one day.
Across Virginia, it was the most intense snowstorm of the century: A blanket of snow 1 to 2 feet deep was on the ground by midafternoon Sunday, with only Tidewater spared. Virginia remained under the state of emergency that was declared Saturday, and at least a dozen counties sought help from National Guard troops driving 4-by-4 vehicles and armored personnel carriers. Gov. George Allen increased the number of guardsmen available Sunday from 32 to 200.
``This is almost the snowfall of the century,'' said Mike LaCivita, spokesman for the state Department of Emergency Services.
In the Roanoke Valley, Roanoke and Roanoke County declared states of emergency and also sought National Guard support. Two all-terrain vehicles were deployed to Roanoke but weren't expected to arrive until late Sunday, city spokeswoman Michelle Bono said.
Hundreds of churches canceled worship services Sunday. Most schools and local governments will be closed today, and state government offices also will be closed.
For the sheer amount of snow, this weekend's storm is eclipsed by only one other in the Roanoke Valley - an 1890 deluge that dumped 36 inches of snow on Roanoke, damaged many buildings and was credited with turning a booming economy into a bust.
"We've got a way to go to match that," said Sam Simpson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Roanoke.
The large accumulation had some people calling the weekend storm a blizzard, but meteorologists say a blizzard must have 35 mph winds that last more than three hours. Other blizzard qualifications include blowing snow and visibility of a quarter-mile or less - specifications the weekend storm did meet.
Meteorologist Danielle Desrosiers said a combination of cold temperatures, a slowly developing storm system and a lot of moisture led to the large accumulation of snow.
"It's just been almost an ideal situation for snow," she said.
An ideal situation for the snow, maybe, but the forecasters at the weather service's Blacksburg office couldn't fix a disabled radar dome in Floyd County because they couldn't get to it.
Meteorologist Jan Jackson said he and his colleagues were dialing in to other radar domes in Charleston, W.Va.; Washington, D.C.; and Morristown, Tenn., and they also used map analysis and satellite pictures to make predictions.
Today's forecast calls for partly sunny skies and windy, cold conditions - no mention of additional snowfall, but temperatures will reach only the mid- to upper 20s.
Remarkably, few accidents were reported, probably because most people heeded advice to stay inside and off the roads.
Across the state, only one storm-related death was reported. A 19-year-old man was killed when his car skidded on an ice-covered road in Chesterfield County and was struck by two cars traveling in the opposite direction.
The most serious accident Sunday in Western Virginia involved an eastbound Norfolk Southern train that derailed in the Ellett Valley of Montgomery County about 9 a.m. Eighty-one of the 99 cars, which were carrying grain, derailed, and seven overturned. The engineer and conductor were not injured, and the train's two engines remained intact.
NS spokesman Bob Auman said the cause of the accident was under investigation, and he could not say whether it was weather-related. Supervisory personnel from the railroad were headed to the scene Sunday afternoon.
The railroad will use an alternative line between Bluefield, W.Va., and Roanoke, Auman said, to prevent delays of other scheduled trains.
Ellett Valley residents said the train was traveling at high speed as it came through their neighborhood and rounded a curve. Robert Wiatt, whose red brick home faces the tracks at the accident site, said he heard a loud noise as the train went around the curve.
Wiatt said bright-yellow kernels of corn seeped through the ripped metal of the loaded cars. Millions of kernels spilled onto the side of the tracks, mixing with the falling snow that covered the mangled cars by afternoon.
In Roanoke, officials established four telephone lines for residents to call with nonemergency requests, because emergency dispatchers were swamped with people asking about snow removal. Those numbers are 981-2417, 981-2725, 981-2609 and 981-2550.
The city also opened an emergency shelter Sunday night at the Roanoke Civic Center for residents who lose electricity during the storm.
Officials at American Electric Power - formerly Appalachian Power Co. - reported only minor problems Sunday, but a forecast for strong winds overnight had them concerned about power lines.
Virginia Department of Transportation crews worked around the clock to clear roads; as the snow continued to fall, though, it looked as if they were fighting a losing battle.
Laura Bullock, VDOT's community affairs coordinator, said conditions weren't likely to improve much today, and she recommended that people stay at home if possible.
Crews hope to reach secondary roads by midday.
"We'll do whatever it takes to get the roads open and safe," Bullock said. Motorists who have to travel can check statewide road conditions by calling (800) 367-ROAD.
Residents who hope to use Valley Metro today should not count on buses to get them to work, Roanoke spokeswoman Bono said. But, she added, buses may be back on the streets by the afternoon.
Maintenance crews plowed the primary runway at Roanoke Regional Airport in anticipation of reopening at least one runway today, airport spokesman Mark Courtney said.
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