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Metro is restoring weekday rail and bus service Thursday after several days of suspended or limited operations following Winter Storm Fern. Most Fairfax Connector routes remain on a reduced Saturday schedule, though a few have resumed regular weekday service.
The return comes amid a punishing cold snap that could rank among the region’s worst since the late 1800s by some measures. Washington fell to 13 degrees Tuesday morning, while communities across the area recorded single-digit and below-zero temperatures. The cold began intensifying Saturday and may persist until around Groundhog Day on Feb. 2.
Health insurance enrollment is also lagging as Virginia’s Friday, Jan. 30, deadline approaches. Thousands fewer residents have registered through the state marketplace this cycle. Advocates point to sharply higher insurance costs stemming from state and federal changes.
Thursday marks one year since an American Airlines regional jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter collided in midair on Jan. 29, 2025. D.C. police, fire and emergency medical responders are reflecting on the difficult recovery operation, which required divers and crews to search wreckage in the icy Potomac River.
In Annandale, Fairfax County police arrested two drivers after vehicles struck police cruisers during an Interstate 495 traffic stop. Officers had stopped a suspected impaired driver near Little River Turnpike at about 4 a.m. Jan. 23. While they conducted sobriety testing, another driver crashed into two cruisers parked on the shoulder.
A snow-day discovery brought a happier ending for one Fairfax County family. Two community members found a dog named Luke playing in the snow at a local recreation center Tuesday, Jan. 27, and took him to the Fairfax County Animal Shelter. A microchip helped staff reunite Luke with his adopted family after five years apart.
In McLean, Easter Hill recently went under contract with contingencies after being listed for $15.999 million. The nearly four-acre property includes two lots and a four-bedroom home along the community’s Gold Coast, but its Potomac River views are considered a major part of its value. Signs indicate the purchase could be connected to a larger deal involving three adjoining properties and six acres in total.
A retired U.S. Army officer also received an extraordinary New Year’s surprise after buying a Virginia Lottery ticket at the Giant Food at 6011 Burke Center Parkway. Ticket No. 038045 was one of five New Year’s Millionaire Raffle tickets reported Jan. 1 as $1 million winners.
Thursday will be sunny with a high near 23 degrees. West winds of 6 to 10 mph, with gusts reaching 20 mph, could push wind chills as low as 5 below zero. Thursday night will be mostly clear, with a low around 6 degrees and wind chills near 2 below zero as northwest winds blow at about 6 mph.