TOWSON — In the calm hours before the storm, plow trucks were at the ready. The sidewalk salt had been laid. The crowds at grocery stores had subsided.
All that was left to do was make some last minute stops before hunkering down, waiting for the first flakes and any potential complications that could come with them.
“We just needed to grab a couple last minute things in case we lose power. Got a nice little baking dish sort of thing so we can put some candles in it and make eggs on top, camp out style," E.A. Jackson said.
By Saturday night, ice melt was hard to come by, but some supplies like winter windshield wiper fluid and ice scrapers were still available.
Civil servants were also locking in for what may be a long few days. Baltimore County's Emergency Operations Center in the underbelly of the government building, was at full activation as of 8 p.m. Saturday night.
“We’ve got a reprieve for years. Now, it’s back to business," EOC director Howard Simons said.
Staff from across many departments, including public works, health and human services, police, and fire and started their 12 hour shifts. Though if the roads are deemed to not be safe, it's anticipated they would be could be longer.
“What we ask the teams to do is to bring sleeping bags, just in case we can’t get out," D'Andrea Walker, Baltimore County Administrative Officer, said.
"We're probably going to be here for 24 hours," Simons said. "Long couple of days, we're going to make this home."
In Baltimore County, snow removal doesn’t begin until the last flake falls, which is likely not until Sunday afternoon.
"It's going to take us 48 hours to clean the roads... to make them passable," Walker explained.
Ice and sleet are also a concern, not just during the immediate storm but also in the days to follow, especially with the cold weather sticking around.
BGE reports its brought on additional staffing and hired more than 100 contractors to address any power outages that may result from affected power lines and trees, the latter accounting for roughly half of outages.