real

Part of DC Beltway also closed due to accidents

Even though it was sleet, pretty sure this is most white stuff downtown dc has had on ground all year, and now it’s coated in ice. Going to be lots of slips and falls tomorrow am. Very icy out

50 to 50 snow and sleet in downtown dc now. Doubt the snow will last but at least it’s trying

They are already using snow plows to push the sleet off the streets in DC

Lets just move onto an early and sustained spring. Last year, between the Covid lockdowns and the cold that I think persisted into May, Spring was lost. It will be good to have a strong one this year....

Even heavily-salted major streets in downtown DC now whitening up with this round of heavier sleet.

Heavy Sleet moving back into DC.

Kind of how I feel at this stage. People were saying last week's ice storm was the worst in DC in nearly a decade. Wonder if we top that.

I think people just need to start putting more stock into seasonal trends. Every winter event this year, at least in DC, has featured a quicker flip to mix and less snow than models suggested. In other years, however, it seemed like every winter event went the other direction, where snow hung on longer and forecasts were always busting a bit low.

If this were to stay all frz, what is anyone best guess for how much ice we are facing? I've lost track of what total precip is expected, if you cut out snow and sleet. It's clearly all rain now in downtown dc, and you can see it already starting to build up on the streets and sidewalks.

Something similar happened in the Monday storm in the Pittsburgh - Buffalo corridor. Initial forecasts were for 6 to 12 inches of snow in many of those places, with snow maps issued days ahead of time. But then the sleet pushed in way, way faster and farther North. You could see it coming on the models the day ahead of time, but most of the public never got the message. And the The public was not happy,.

I don't really think its a bust -- ... But just more evidence that meteorologists who communicate with the public probably should revert back to how it was in the 80s and 90s -- when weather professionals would rarely talk about possible accumulations until the day before the storm hits,. Putting out public snow maps two or three days ahead of time, seems to just set up unrealistic expectations and can cause more confusion than it helps.

Yes, Union Bridge -- like 90 minutes from DC, even now in Covid-era traffic, in what is really an entirely different climate. I don't think most people in the metro area are going to be upset or shocked if they get snow. A true forum divider is when DC is raining and Clarksburg or Columbia get 10 inches.

Seems like if this fails, it's going to be a pretty universal fail, with sleet already reported from Bel Air to Frederick, so likely falls short of a true forum divider.

After 15 minutes of light snow, enough for a car topper, I think Downtown has now gone over to sleet. But even that is not particularly heavy, yet.

Weird. Seeing reports on Twitter of “heavy sleet” already in Rockville. But still Light snow downtown

"Way more intense?" There are literally just flurries in downtown, 3 miles away from SE

Flurries Downtown DC. Sticking to car windshields instantly as it falls, but still not robust enough to be considered even light snow.

It’s basically a nice outdoor mall, with new apartment communities built around it. Also, a lot of diversity there, by Richmond standards. Think Columbia Maryland

And scary, because most storms this winter seem to move through even quicker than had been modeled. Even that rain event two nights ago, was here and gone in just a few hours.

I remember this storm. I think I went to bed in DC expecting to wake up to a lot of snow. I woke, and thought, "Yes, there is a lot of snow on the roads.' But as I left for work or wherever, I realized I was driving though inches and inches of unplowed sleet on DC city streets. It was nasty. I think I went of out of town, but recall then hearing stories of how it all froze solid that night -- before DC could plow the sleet away -- and everything turned into an inches-thick coat of solid ice on DC streets, for days.

Radar has filled in nicely southwest of DC, which looks like should assure this will continue until after sunset when it should quickly get very icy

Sleet here in Downtown DC too -- Maybe just in time... https://twitter.com/dcfireems/status/1360681072527368195?s=20

I think I saw on Twitter this is the first ISW in DC in a dozen years.

That is weird, because every car parked in the lowlands of DC is encased in thick ice.