On the second day of the second blizzard of 2010, correspondent Steve Centanni, cameraman Eric Conner and I had a really cool assignment. For me personally, the ultimate snow lover, it was heaven on earth. For the residents of this city and its surrounding area… probably not so much.
The three of us set off from our bureau, near the US Capitol, early in the morning, roaming the snow-covered, deserted streets of the capital city that’s never seen a snow storm like this. As of 2 p.m., reports of 54.9 inches of snow recorded at Reagan National Airport were coming in. This is reportedly up from a previous record from the 1898-1899 season.
Our plan was to connect with the National Guard, which was activated a few days ago, and go with them on missions around town. Their main mission is to provide humvees and assist the first responders (police, fire and rescue squads) to get to snowed-in areas and respond to emergency calls. Although only 12 National Guard humvees are out on the streets of DC, these humvees are amazing ; they can cut through the snow like they are cutting through butter. We were seeing them all around town.
Our first few attempts to ride with them didn’t pan out quite as I hoped – they had emergencies to take care of. So, until we could do that, we did a little shuffle – I was now driving our crew car, Steve was in the passenger seat and Eric was in the back with his camera and LiveU, cool new technology that allows us to transmit live pictures while on the go. We drove around the city, sometimes gliding through the snow at 3-5 miles per hour. Every time I sped up and had to press the brake pedal ever so slightly, the grumbling under my foot quickly reminded me that the road was resisting; it was not making it easy for us.
We hooked up our LiveU in back of the crew car and started beaming amazing live video back to our New York headquarters and to homes around the country complete with real-time live reports from Steve. Countless plows and trucks were moving the snow around. It was surreal to only see them and no other cars. It was like a real-life version of Bob The Builder.
Around midday, the wind picked up so quickly that the visibility was less then poor. It was non-existent. For a little bit any semblance of activity – the trucks, the plows, the snow clearing crews – seized to exist. To me it seemed as if a giant cotton ball was dropped on District of Columbia. The city was at a stand-still. But, we were still moving in our crew vehicle, struggling to see beyond the hood of our car. Every once in a while we’d see a lone human or two moving on foot, fighting to move through knee-deep snow and often climbing over the enormous snow banks and onto somewhat plowed street. I kept thinking “where are these people going on a day like this???”
When we finally met up with the National Guard, Steve and Eric moved to their Humvee along with the “backpack technology” so we could see the neighborhoods where the Guard has been assisting the first responders first-hand… and keep sending back live video and live reports to our viewers. As the humvee moved north and into more residential neighborhoods, I got my answer to the “where are these people going” question – I stopped a few people and they told me a local supermarket was open, their shelves stocked up pretty well. They hauled they groceries for several blocks through unplowed streets. They said they liked the snow and while their unplowed street was a “pain in the [redacted],” everybody in the city was in the same boat and they hoped to make the best of it.
The National Guard humvee carried Steve and Eric further into the neighborhood, into areas that have not seen a plow since it started snowing last Friday. As I followed behind them in our crew car, I kept the distance making sure I followed in their tire tracks to avoid “slip and slide” in a car. The last thing I needed now was to get stuck.
I have to admit that I was a little apprehensive about driving around when residents were being advised to stay off the roads. But I figured, this is different, I’m working, that doesn’t apply to me. Earlier in the day when I took my seat behind the wheel of our crew car I remembered what my father taught me about driving in the snow: let go of the gas pedal when you want to slow down, avoid hitting the break as much as possible if you don’t want your car do a “dance” during which IT will be controlling you, and don’t try to go to fast. It worked. Thanks dad!
All in all, it was good day. If somebody told me this is what it was like, I am not sure I would necessarily believe them. But seeing it first hand and sharing it with our audience made this day a success. In fact, so much so that I get to do it all over again tomorrow. Yippy!