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Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser apologized Thursday to district residents for the city failing to be prepared for an inch of snowfall that came down on the nation's capital Wednesday night
Bowser tweeted, "Last night the District failed to deploy the necessary resources in response to the snow - for that I am sorry"
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser apologized Thursday to district residents for the city failing to be prepared for an inch of snowfall that came down on the nation’s capital Wednesday night. The incident comes just a day before a record storm is expected to wallop Washington.
She tweeted, “Last night the District failed to deploy the necessary resources in response to the snow - for that I am sorry.”
She also held a press conference reiterating the same information, and assuring the residents that the city is prepared for the upcoming blizzard.
“We believe that we did not provide adequate resources at a time when it could (have made) a difference in last evening’s commute. We should have been out with more resources,” she told reporters.
Later Thursday, she told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on “The Situation Room” that the city has been preparing all week for the storm, saying that she’s declared a state of emergency in Washington and has moved the snow operation to make it a Homeland Security and Emergency Management event. She also has advised D.C. residents to be prepared to be indoors for 36 hours.
“We want people to stay off the roads tomorrow,” she said. “This is not just a snow storm, it’s a blizzard. And in fact, what is forecast is an amount of snow that we haven’t had in Washington in 90 years.”
She also said that she knows Washington residents should have expected better snow services from the city.
Even President Barack Obama was affected by the snowy streets as his motorcade made its way from Joint Base Andrews to the White House. Motorcade vans skidded and slipped on the icy roads, making contact with the curbs and the drive, which normally takes about 25 minutes, instead took an hour.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the White House is confident that Washington is preparing adequately for the storm.
Obama, Earnest said, is likely to ride out the storm “warm and toasty here inside the White House.”
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh was at the White House Thursday to meet with Obama and said he would offer Bowser to borrow recently purchased truck-mounted snow blowers when he sees her later in the day.
“Number one, I think that’s the best thing you can do, get on TV and talk about what the preparation is,” he said. “When I see the mayor later, I’m going to offer to her if she needs these snow blowers to come to the city to help her. We will help.”
Bowser told CNN she is look that she is looking for all the help the city can get for the event.
The snow is expected to hit Washington on Friday and lock down residents in the city to their homes. Officials have recommended residents stock up on food and other necessities in the case that power goes out in the city.
Blizzard watches now cover the Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City metro areas, or nearly 30 million people, according to the National Weather Service.
CNN’s Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.
