A broken streetlight and smashed bus shelter near Burke Road and Peppercorn Drive after a June 22, 2026 thunderstorm (staff photo by Mary Stachyra Lopez)
Thousands of residents in Fairfax County, particularly the Burke area, are grappling with the aftermath of yesterday’s thunderstorm.
As of 11 a.m., more than 1,400 homes and businesses in the county were still without electricity, including about 700 customers in the Burke, Springfield and Fairfax area south of George Mason University’s campus, according to Dominion Energy.
Both centers are slated to close as county-run facilities after the summer. Fairfax County officials say a combination of a challenging budget environment and declining attendance trends led to the decisions.
A Fairfax County Police Department SUV with red and blue lights flashing (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
After issuing more than 10,000 traffic citations in early June, police are preparing to resume a traffic safety campaign targeting reckless drivers, speeding, and distracted driving later this summer.
The third phase of the “Road Shark” initiative, led by the Fairfax County Police Department in partnership with Virginia State Police, will begin Aug. 10.
It’s time to get festive. In partnership with Angelika Film Center, the Coca-Cola Holiday Caravan is rolling into Mosaic to kick off the season! Take photos with the iconic Coca-Cola Polar Bear and see the truck before it heads to the next stop on its nationwide tour.
Catch Elf on the big screen, enjoy kids activities and face painting, send a letter to Santa and soak up all the festive fun!
A red-wing blackbird calling in a tree at Royal Lake Park in Kings Park West (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Va. Lawmakers Approve Budget — “Virginia lawmakers approved a two-year spending plan Monday, ending months of negotiations as the deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown approached. The Senate approved the plan with a 23-16 vote, and the House of Delegates passed it 71-22. Now it heads to Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s desk.” [WTOP]
Family Mourns KilledPedestrians — “Family and a big group of friends are mourning the sudden death of a Falls Church area man. Sean King was walking home from work on the sidewalk along a Leesburg Pike service road
when a car jumped the curb and struck him. He died a short time later at the hospital.” [NBC4]
How Drought Affects Data Centers — If drought conditions persist and trigger mandatory water restrictions, data centers would be “treated the same as all other commercial, industrial and residential customers, state and local officials revealed.” [Virginia Mercury]
Measles Case Passed Through Dulles — “A confirmed measles case has been found in a Maryland resident who traveled through Dulles Airport and went to an urgent care office in the District, area health officials said … On June 17, the person traveled through Concourse C, the International Arrivals Building and baggage claim areas of Dulles International Airport between 6 a.m. and 11 a.m.” [WTOP]
Metro Contract for Fare Station Upgrades — “The region’s largest transit agency on Monday awarded a $38.9 million base contract to Indra Group, a Spanish technology firm, to design, manufacture, install and maintain 450 new ‘state-of-the-art’ customer terminal machines across 98 stations as well as at WMATA’s testing and training facilities.” The new machines will feature touch screens and accept mobile wallets, along with credit and debit cards. [Washington Business Journal]
Developers Discuss Office Space Demand — “The availability of trophy office space in Northern Virginia is dwindling as construction remains scarce. Real estate experts say it will take the right type of tenant to change that.” Comstock Chief Marketing Officer Timothy Steffan estimates that it would take leases of $85 per square foot per year for a developer “to cover skilled labor, materials and other costs” of a new trophy office building. [Bisnow]
Town Hall on Crescent Apartments Development — “Reston residents will have a chance Thursday to weigh in on a proposed Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan amendment that could allow a larger Reston Community Center presence to be included in the future redevelopment of the Crescent Apartments property near Lake Anne.” [Patch]
Local Students Perform on Broadway — Recent Oakton High School graduate John Poncy and rising Madison High School senior Allie Blanchet performed in character medleys on Broadway last night as part of a ceremony for the National High School Musical Theatre Awards, also called the Jimmy Awards. The pair earned spots after winning best leading actor and actress at the Brandon Victor Dixon Awards for D.C. regional high school theater. [Washingtonian]
New Book Imagines Time-Traveling Metro — “A new novel is out this week that’s partly based in D.C. and reimagines the Metro as a time-traveling portal … Retro, written by D.C. journalist Jessica M. Goldstein, is out June 23. It follows Ash, an out-of-work actress who takes a job at a time travel start-up that lets wealthy clients party in the past.” [Axios DC]
It’s Tuesday — Expect a 40% chance of showers before 3 p.m., with mostly cloudy skies and a high near 80°F. Night will be mostly clear with a low around 62°F and a gentle north wind at about 6 mph. [NWS]
Want more local news? Check out our newest sister site, WSHnow, with the latest from across the region.
Here is what’s going on Tuesday throughout the county, from our event calendar.
No events today. Have one to promote? Submit it to the calendar.
🌦️ Tuesday’s forecast
Expect a 50% chance of showers, mainly before 2 PM, with mostly cloudy skies and a high near 78°F. North winds will range from 6 to 9 mph, with gusts up to 21 mph. By Tuesday night, the weather will be mostly clear with a low around 61°F and a north wind of about 7 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
More than 25,000 homes and businesses are without power in Fairfax County after severe storms ripped through the region.
The storms arrived amid the evening commute and came in two waves, prompting multiple Severe Thunderstorm Warnings from the National Weather Service. As of publication time the second wave is starting to exit the county to the east.
The front of the Fairfax County Courthouse (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
The Fairfax County Circuit Court is now offering an online education hub for students and other Fairfax County residents interested in the local court system and its history to explore.
Officially launched last Wednesday (June 17), the Judicial Learning Center of Fairfax County is the first resource of its kind provided by any state trial court in the U.S., according to Fairfax Clerk of Court Chris Falcon.
Kids ride electric dirt bikes on the W&OD Trail in Vienna (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)
Local police and parks officials across Northern Virginia are working to raise awareness of how to safely ride and share paths with electric bicycles in response to reported upticks in complaints about reckless behavior.
Over the past month, the Vienna Police Department has been sharing information about safe and legal riding practices, while also stepping up patrols in areas where concerns have cropped up as part of an E-Bike Safety Awareness Campaign launched on May 29.