Winter storms have dodged the Washington area all winter, but forecasters expect a direct hit Wednesday night with up to 8 inches of now. The first wave of weather was expected to start late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning in the form of sleet and freezing rain, shifting to light rain later in the morning, the National Weather Service said. But sometime around 7 p.m., although possibly earlier, the rain will turn to snow. A band of snow falling at the rate of 1 to 2 inches per hour is expected to form in Northern Virginia and points north and east of the District, ending early Thursday morning. Freeman Klopott