50 MPH Wind Gusts, Scattered Power Outages As VA Storm Blows Through

WASHINGTON, DC — Rainfall will wind down across Virginia Monday afternoon as winds kick up to 25 to 30 miles per hour, with 50 mph gusts creating power outages. Snow will fall in the mountains, the National Weather Service said.

A wind advisory is in effect for much of the area until 2 p.m. Monday. Strong wind gusts could produce isolated instances of wind damage, the agency said.

A gale warning is in effect for all waters today. A coastal flood advisory is set to end at 1 p.m. Monday.

Close to 2 inches of rain fell across the Baltimore-DC region, reports said.

Reagan National Airport received 1.92 inches of rain. BWI Marshall Airport had 2.01 inches of rainfall, and Dulles Airport had 1.91 inches of rainfall, breaking the Dec. 17 rainfall record of 0.75 inches set in 2000, according to WTOP meteorologist Mike Stinneford.

The storm has cut the power for more than 200,000 utility customers in the Northeast alone as of Monday morning, according to poweroutage.us.

In Maryland, just over 8,00 utility customers were without electricity as of 1 p.m. Monday. About 5,000 customers in Virginia were offline.

Areas in the wind advisory include: Fairfax, Arlington, Falls Church, Alexandria, Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William, Manassas, Manassas Park, Reston, Herndon, Annandale, Centreville, Chantilly, McLean, Franconia, Arlington, Warrenton, Purcellville, Leesburg, Ashburn, Sterling, Haymarket, Dale City, Manassas, Woodbridge and Lake Ridge.

The weather forecaster say locations from Richmond, Virginia and Washington, D.C., to Philadelphia and New York City are likely to see between 1 and 2.75 inches of rain by the time the rain ends in early afternoon, Accuweather.com said.

Wind gusts could range from 40-50 mph from areas of eastern Virginia through far eastern Pennsylvania to western Maine as the storm moves northward through Monday evening.

"This storm could snarl the Monday morning commute in the major cities from Washington, D.C., to Boston. Residents may need to give themselves a little extra time when commuting to work on Monday," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Alex DaSilva.

Excessive runoff may result in flooding of rivers, creeks, streams, and other low-lying and flood-prone locations. Flooding may occur in poor drainage and urban areas. Storm drains
and ditches may become clogged with debris, the National Weather Service said. "Localized amounts up to four inches are possible along and east of I-95."

A hazardous weather outlook is also issued for the Maryland portion of the Chesapeake Bay, Tidal Potomac River, and I-95 corridor through central Maryland, northern Virginia, and District of Columbia.

A gale watch is in effect for all of the waters Monday.

Here's the latest forecast for DC/Northern Virginia from the National Weather Service:

Monday: Rain likely before 11am. Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 52. Windy, with a west wind 22 to 28 mph, with gusts as high as 47 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Monday Night: A slight chance of rain showers before 11pm, then a chance of rain and snow showers after 2am. Mostly clear, with a low around 33. West wind 10 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Tuesday: A chance of snow showers before 8am. Mostly sunny, with a high near 41. Breezy, with a northwest wind 14 to 23 mph, with gusts as high as 32 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 27. Northwest wind 7 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph.

Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 45. Northwest wind 7 to 11 mph.

Wednesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 32.

Thursday: Sunny, with a high near 50.

Thursday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 30.

Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 47.