The sun came out Thursday, as area residents dug themselves out of an icy mess in below-freezing temperatures.
The forecast for today and the rest of the weekend called for more sunshine and dry cold air, with a high of 30 and a low in the mid-teens, according to the National Weather Service.
“It turned out to be a really weak [storm] system, although I wouldn’t be shocked to see a snow shower Sunday,” NWS meteorologist Brian Lasorosa said.
By Tuesday, temperatures should return to the upper 40s, normal for this time of year here, he said.
Meanwhile, the Washington region coped with the remains of about 3 inches of sleet and snow that mucked up much of the region this week.
Businesses that depended on Valentine’s Day for big sales were let down by the wintery weather. Many restaurants closed or had canceled reservations and florists struggled to make deliveries, with some asking customers to accept flowers a day late.
Crews cleared streets and sidewalks, employees returned to work and the Metrorail and airports ran smoothly and on schedule.
But Montgomery, Fairfax and Loudoun County schools will remain closed Friday, giving students and faculty a five-day weekend. Schools officials said they were keeping the schools closed because ice remained on the sidewalks and could present a danger to the students.
In Prince George’s County, about 14,000 homes and business remained without power. Trees weighed down with heavy ice, combined with high winds, brought down power lines.
Officials hoped to have the power outages solved by Friday night.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
