Countywide

Fairfax County urges residents to stay off roads as snow turns into sleet

By Angela Woolsey
1/5

Winter Storm Fern has arrived in Fairfax County, bringing a mix of snow and sleet as anticipated.

Fairfax County is urging residents to avoid traveling today (Sunday) as snowplows work to clear major roads, noting that the storm is expected to continue for “several more hours.”

“Snow continues to fall across the county and region this morning,” the county said. “Though snow totals are now expected to be a little less, more sleet will impact our area.”

As the sun rises, here’s a look at I-66 and I-495. Please stay off the roads and allow plows to remove snow as the storm continues for several more hours. More snow info at our snow guide: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/snow/

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— Fairfax County Government (@fairfaxcounty.gov) January 25, 2026 at 7:45 AM

Snow continues to fall across the county. Though snow totals are expected to be less, more sleet impacts our area. Things to know:

Stay off the roads
Our Guide to Snow
Hypothermia help
Operating status
Salt properly

https://fairfaxcountyemergency.wpcomstaging.com/2026/01/25/sunday-morning-update

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— Fairfax County Government (@fairfaxcounty.gov) January 25, 2026 at 9:50 AM

According to the National Weather Service, sleet pellets began to mix with snow along the I-66 corridor by 5:30 a.m. A total of 8.8 inches of snow and one-tenth of an inch of ice accumulation are predicted for the immediate D.C. area, including Fairfax County, per the most recent forecast.

Projected snow accumulation totals from Winter Storm Fern for the D.C. region (via National Weather Service)

A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect until 4 a.m. tomorrow (Monday).

Most bus service, trash collections suspended

As previously reported, all Fairfax County facilities are closed today, and Fairfax City announced this morning that its CUE Bus service has joined Fairfax Connector in suspending service for the day “due to the severity of the winter storm.”

“This decision was not made lightly; however, the safety of our passengers, operators, and staff remains our top priority,” the city said in its announcement. “… We will reassess conditions and determine whether CUE will operate on a modified schedule for Monday or suspend service again. An update will be provided once that determination has been made.”

Metro announced last night that it will continue to operate 33 routes identified as critical “for customers traveling to hospitals and life-sustaining facilities” throughout the storm. That includes five Fairfax-based routes: F1X, F20, F23, F24 and F60.

Service on other routes has been temporarily suspended. Status updates on the routes currently in service can be found on Metro’s website.

As of 11 a.m., Virginia State Police has responded to 26 crashes in Northern Virginia since last night, including two with injuries. A driver died after a crash on I-495 in Springfield yesterday, but a preliminary investigation determined that one wasn’t weather-related, since it occurred before precipitation began to fall.

The Virginia Department of Transportation’s traffic cameras show that there have been a number of disabled motorists on I-66, I-495 and other highways.

While Dominion Energy’s outage map isn’t currently showing any outages in Northern Virginia, the utility says it’s preparing for “significant and widespread power outages” throughout Virginia and North Carolina as ice accumulation builds.

“Ice accumulation greater than 0.25 inches is the greatest concern,” Dominion said in an 11:23 a.m. update. “It will cause extensive damage to trees, power lines and utility poles, as well as extremely difficult travel conditions for restoration crews. The most significant impacts will be in Central and Southside Virginia, parts of Northern Virginia, and inland areas of southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina.”

The utility has nearly 8,000 crew members, contractors and support personnel on hand to respond to outages, and it’s continuing to add more resources. Hospitals, schools, water treatment facilities and other community services will be prioritized for restoration, along with areas that see the largest numbers of outages.

Dominion advises people to stay off the roads to make way for snowplows, emergency responders and its crews, noting that the falling sleet is creating icy conditions.

“If you see a downed line or pole, stay at least 30 feet away and call to report it immediately,” Dominion said.

Virginia customers can contact 866-366-4357.

With the storm expected to continue into the morning, the Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services (DPWES) and the Town of Vienna have both announced that they won’t collect trash and recycling tomorrow. Vienna will pick up Monday collections with its Tuesday routes, while the county is pushing all collections this week back by one day.

The Town of Herndon has canceled recycling collections for both Monday and Tuesday (Jan. 27).

Some businesses closed for snow day

Many businesses are closed today due to the inclement weather, including the bookstore Bards Alley in Vienna, Sho Sushi and Izakaya in McLean and all Pattana Restaurant Group locations. The company owns Tiki Thai in Reston and the recently opened Bird’s Eye Thai at Tysons Galleria.

Wegmans announced at 3:24 p.m. that all of its stores in Maryland and Virginia, except for a location in Virginia Beach, will close for the remainder of today. The grocery stores are currently expected to reopen at 10 a.m. tomorrow, depending on weather and road conditions.

“Our teams are closely monitoring the storm with support from professional weather services, and we will make any additional adjustments as needed,” Wegmans said in a media alert. “… We appreciate the patience and understanding of our customers as we work to safely resume operations and continue serving our communities.”

Updates for individual locations can be found on the company’s website.

Kusshi Sushi, however, is keeping all of its Virginia and Maryland locations open and offering a $10 discount on in-store and online purchases. Customers can get the promotion with the code SNOWDAY.

The Japanese chain can be found at Reston Town Center and Pike 7 Plaza in Tysons.

Anyone planning to patronize a local business today should call ahead or check their social media for their status.

About the Author

  • Angela Woolsey is the site editor for FFXnow. A graduate of George Mason University, she worked as a general assignment reporter for the Fairfax County Times before joining Local News Now as the Tysons Reporter editor in 2020.