Virginia officials defend response to snowy gridlock on I-95

By SARAH RANKIN and DENISE LAVOIE
Associated Press

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia officials are defending their response to the snowy gridlock that resulted on Interstate 95 after a winter storm dumped nearly 11 inches of snow. Officials noted the storm that started as rain, meaning roads couldn’t be pretreated. It was followed by an unusually heavy snowfall and plunging temperatures. That created poor conditions that resulted in the stranding of hundreds of motorists overnight Monday into Tuesday along a stretch of one of the nation’s biggest interstate highways. On Wednesday evening, Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency in advance of another storm expected to bring more winter weather to the state beginning Thursday evening.