Snow began falling on Washington, D.C. and Baltimore during the early afternoon of January 6, and continued at a consistent rate until mid-afternoon the next day.
 At that time, the metro area received 13 to 17 inches (33 to 43 cm), and after a few hours of sleet and then a complete stop for several hours, it seemed the worst was over.
 But overnight, as the storm slowly crawled northward, extremely heavy bands of snow came in from the east.
 These bands created whiteout conditions as winds gusted past 40 miles per hour (64 km/h), along with thunder and lightning.

By the morning of January 8, the bands tapered off, and the metro area was left with a blanket of 15 to 25 inches (38 to 64 cm) of snow.
 Baltimore received 22.5 inches (57 cm) and Washington Dulles International Airport received 24.6 inches (62 cm).
 Many areas north and west in Maryland and West Virginia received well over 2 feet (61 cm) with a few locations in the mountains of West Virginia and Virginia receiving up to 4 feet (1.2 m).

In DC, it was known as the "Blizzard of '96" or the "Great Furlough Storm," because it occurred just after the 1996 federal government shutdown and since the Federal government was closed due to the storm, lengthened the time federal employees were away from their jobs in the DC area.
 Because of unseasonably warm weather in mid-January and a warm rain exceeding an inch (2.5 cm) on Monday, January 15, the snow melted quickly and caused the worst winter flooding in decades for river and stream valleys from Southwest Virginia to New York.
Snow began falling on Washington, D.C. and Baltimore during the early afternoon of January 6, and continued at a consistent rate until mid-afternoon the next day.  At that time, the metro area received 13 to 17 inches (33 to 43 cm), and after a few hours of sleet and then a complete stop for several hours, it seemed the worst was over.  But overnight, as the storm slowly crawled northward, extremely heavy bands of snow came in from the east.  These bands created whiteout conditions as winds gusted past 40 miles per hour (64 km/h), along with thunder and lightning.
By the morning of January 8, the bands tapered off, and the metro area was left with a blanket of 15 to 25 inches (38 to 64 cm) of snow.  Baltimore received 22.5 inches (57 cm) and Washington Dulles International Airport received 24.6 inches (62 cm).  Many areas north and west in Maryland and West Virginia received well over 2 feet (61 cm) with a few locations in the mountains of West Virginia and Virginia receiving up to 4 feet (1.2 m).
In DC, it was known as the "Blizzard of '96" or the "Great Furlough Storm," because it occurred just after the 1996 federal government shutdown and since the Federal government was closed due to the storm, lengthened the time federal employees were away from their jobs in the DC area.  Because of unseasonably warm weather in mid-January and a warm rain exceeding an inch (2.5 cm) on Monday, January 15, the snow melted quickly and caused the worst winter flooding in decades for river and stream valleys from Southwest Virginia to New York.
North American blizzard of 1996