Virginia Beach activates EOC, closes city facilities ahead of forecasted heavy snow

Virginia Beach city officials told the City Council they have activated emergency monitoring and will close city facilities to the public as a winter storm expected to begin Wednesday moves into the area.

Director Tapas Tapasinski of Emergency Management told council the forecast calls for light snow beginning around 11 a.m. Wednesday, with widespread steady snow by 1 p.m. and the heaviest snowfall overnight into Thursday; a second round is possible Thursday morning and through the day. Tapasinski said the city is under a winter storm warning and forecast totals of about 5 to 6 inches are “pretty well likely,” though “we absolutely can't rule out 8 or a little bit more in some spots with drift and snow.”

City Manager Patrick Duhany and Tapasinski said the city has moved to preposition resources to keep critical routes open and to protect public safety. The Emergency Operations Center was placed at a level 1 monitoring status and is expected to move to an in-person level 2 activation Thursday to manage…