Frustration in D.C. persists amid blizzard aftermath woes
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Washington's mayor plans to lift the snow emergency Thursday evening. For now, the city's moving at half-speed, with the streets still clogged. The same in Baltimore, which led to a dangerous situation overnight.
The snow didn't start a fire in Baltimore, but it spread to five row-houses when firefighters couldn't get their trucks to the unplowed street. Residents had to help drag fire hoses through the snow.
"My mother's house wouldn't have burned to the ground if we didn't have snow on the street," said Joe Keebler.
Joe Keebler and Debra Fetchik's mother lost her home.
"I'm just happy that my mother was safe," Fetchik said through tears.
Nearly 72 hours after the storm stopped, frustration in Washington D.C. is growing.
"I think that D.C.'s snow removal plans are spring," said Gil Schwartz.
Schwartz has had enough of the treacherous walk down a tiny carved out path.
"I think that three days is really outrageous. It really is," he said. "It really should be cleared off. There are older people here and people who really rely upon being able to get out."
Others took to Twitter using the hashtag #SnowStuck to complain.
One woman posted that 50 of her parents' neighbors are shoveling and snow blowing their street instead of waiting for a plow.
The cleanup remains an around the clock effort as fears loom of a nightmare commute when the federal government reopens.
"I don't care where you are in the nation, 24 inches of snow in an urban environment requires clean-up, and that's what we're going to see probably at least over the next 48 hours and going in to the end of the week," said D.C.'s Chris Geldart.
D.C. schools plan to open on Thursday, other districts could stay closed all week. The National Park Service said it removed enough snow from the National Mall to fill the Washington Monument more than 18 times.
But D.C. isn't alone in its frustration.
Travelers who were snowed out all weekend descended of New York's LaGuardia Airport on Tuesday -- creating one of the worst traffic jams in memory. Many were stuck for hours in and out.
Nearly 13,000 flights were cancelled nationwide over four days.
Close to 700 were canceled on Wednesday -- as things slowly get back to normal.