Hundreds stranded, flights canceled as storm hits East Coast
NEW: Delta, American, AirTran, Virgin America announce flight cancellations
Washington plans to "throw everything we have" at snow emergency, mayor says
Up to 22 inches of snow predicted Saturday in mid-Atlantic region
Storm slamming areas from southern New England to Tennessee and North Carolina
(CNN) -- The snowstorm socking the East Coast prompted an emergency declaration in the nation's capital, stranded hundreds of motorists, sparked havoc at airports, and threatened to keep hordes of Christmas shoppers indoors.
Ten to 20 inches of snow were predicted for swaths of the country's mid-Atlantic region. Washington, D.C., Mayor Adrian M. Fenty said the storm -- arriving on the last shopping weekend before Christmas -- is "perhaps the biggest we've seen in several years."
"We are going to throw everything we have at it to keep the district open for business on this busy pre-holiday weekend," Fenty said when he announced the snow emergency.
Washington is one of the major cities along the Interstate 95 corridor to be hit by a major winter storm.
The National Weather Service said there is a blizzard warning for the D.C. region, with snowfall accumulations from 12 to 22 inches and 40-mph wind gusts "expected to create whiteout conditions later this afternoon."
Other areas braving and expecting heavy snow included Baltimore, Maryland, where a blizzard warning has been declared; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; New York; Richmond, Virginia; and regions from Tennessee and North Carolina to the southern New England states.
Is winter weather affecting you? Share stories, photos and videos
The D.C. snow emergency, which went into effect at 7 a.m. Saturday, came as important business was going on at the U.S. Senate. Undaunted by the snowy conditions, senators passed a defense spending bill and thrashed out the contentious health care legislation.
Video: Snowy Saturday
Video: Wintry weather in DC
Video: Obama's snowy arrival RELATED TOPICS
Winter Weather
Federal Aviation Administration
National Weather Service
The mayor urged residents to stay put.
"We urge everyone, if you don't have to go anywhere, wait. This snow should end early [Sunday] morning with a 24-hour cleanup. We should have a lot of streets ready to go by rush hour Monday. And, hopefully, all of it done between Monday and Wednesday."
The district deployed crews to salt and plow and noted that under a snow emergency in Washington, "all vehicles must be moved immediately from marked snow emergency routes" and parking is prohibited on those roadways. There have been car accidents and hundreds of police officers have been deployed.
The district said the rail system will be running "very close to a normal schedule in snowfall of up to six inches."
If snow accumulates more than 8 inches, above-ground rail service may be suspended and and only underground stations would be open. As of Saturday morning, the metro rail system was running normally, but the bus system was running only on emergency snow routes.
In Virginia, the governor declared a state of emergency Friday as the icy conditions caused a few hundred accidents by Friday night, said Bob Spieldenner, director of public affairs at the Virginia Department of Emergency Management.
Rough conditions existed on Interstate 81, a major highway crossing the state, and other thoroughfares. Officials said scores of motorists have been stranded at some point throughout the state when their vehicles got stuck in the snow. The National Guard was working to bring people into shelters and crews were working to clear roads.
A Montgomery County, Virginia, official said a handful of people have been taken to the hospital.
Air travelers en route to holiday destinations may face delays, said Tammy Jones, spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration. Virgin America Airlines said it was canceling all incoming and outgoing flights to Washington/Dulles Airport on Saturday in advance of the storm. Ice and snow caused arriving flight delays at the Philadelphia International Airport.
Delta Air Lines said it has canceled all flights in and out of Washington area airports and might cancel flight operations in and out of the New York area later on Saturday.
AirTran spokeswoman Quinnie Jenkins said all arrivals into the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, Reagan National Airport, and Dulles were canceled and departures were severely delayed.
American Airlines is also canceling all flights in and outbound to D.C. area airports, Baltimore, and Philadelphia because of the weather.
In Maryland, the Baltimore Ravens pushed back the starting time of their Sunday football game from 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. because of the storm, according to the team's Web site.
In North Carolina, the State Highway Patrol said it had received more than 1,000 calls to assist in crashes or motorists stranded in 8 inches of snow.
The storm was expected to taper off in parts of North Carolina on Saturday, the weather service said. But it still had a winter storm warning in effect Saturday that stretches into the evening. Forecasters expected as much as 8 more inches of snow in parts of central North Carolina.
In Asheville, North Carolina, snow covered the roads, making for difficult commutes. Some residents, like iReporter Ed Jenest, figured it was better to stay home.
"It's a great day not to go anywhere," he said. "We're listening to music and we've got a fire going."
The storm is expected to cause chaos for weekend travelers and Christmas shoppers, but a UPS spokesman said shipped packages shouldn't be delayed.
"The good thing for us and our competitors is that this is happening on a weekend," UPS spokesman Norman Black said.
He says packages set for Monday delivery are "on planes that land tonight and that offload tonight."
UPS never has packages in motion on a Sunday, even the Sunday before Christmas. And because Saturday volume is usually light -- because delivering on Saturday is a premium service -- Black expects few problems.
That is, unless the roads are still a mess and airports aren't cleaned by Monday.
