Storm predictions have been updated and changed a bit by the Washington Post:
Nor’easter Stella is going to hit tonight, just after rush hour, and continue into Tuesday. The storm will be moving south to north. Total accumulations, from the Washington Post:
For some areas, this storm will be a nuisance and for others a major disruption to our lives. An excellent timeline for the storm is here.
What these levels mean:
Many of us are facing a level 3 or 4 storm. So how do we prepare? It’s not just bread, milk, and toilet paper, but those are a good place to start. This will be a heavy snow so there are likely to be power outages. For many of us in the heavier snow areas, we are supplied water by our wells and pumps. If power is out, we have no water. I would suggest having plenty of bottled water on hand and fill the bathtubs with water to flush the toilets and to wash. Do you have flashlights and batteries? Can you easily find them in the dark? Do you have enough food to last a couple of days and food that need not be refrigerated because you won’t want to be opening and closing the refrigerator if your power is out? Do you have enough pet food? If you’re running low on dog or cat food or iguana treats, get more this afternoon on your way home. Making homemade dog food during a power outage won’t be fun and may not be possible. DO NOT under any circumstances leave your pets outside. They will die. If you intend to use your propane grill to cook, do you have enough propane in the tank? If you are running low on any medications get the refilled today.
The Washington Post has a handy dandy checklist for storm preparation here. How well do you score?
More on preparing for the storm here and here.