
This week, it feels a little bit like Mother Nature is throwing everything it can at D.C. just to mess with us! Despite the cold weather and last weekend’s snow that’s been melting away, yesterday, on Thursday night, D.C. was hit with some of the worst fog that we’ve seen in a long time and it’s still present in parts of the city now on Friday morning! The “Fog Advisory” is considered to stay in place until around 10 am, during which time Washingtonians are urged to avoid unnecessary travel because the weather conditions have resulted in dangerously low levels of visibility on the roads!
As a result of the fog, the words “extreme caution” have been pressed by local authorities to express the level of risk associated with road conditions this morning, encouraging pedestrians and bicyclists to wear bright clothing, and if possible utilize reflective or ‘hi-vis’ accessories to ensure that motorists can see you with more than enough time to react.
Once the fog dissipates, which will likely be around midday today, temperatures are expected to climb to near 70 degrees offering a truly spring-like D.C. experience: humid and wet. Unfortunately, colder temps are expected to come back this weekend along with rain that will bring D.C. back in the mid-40s to 50s range.
Tips for driving in foggy conditions in D.C.
- Allow yourself extra time to reach your destination; drive slower whenever possible.
- Use fog lights or low-beam headlights to ensure you are visible to cars in front of and behind you.
- Avoid using high-beam lights, which can cause further glare and make it more difficult to drive.
- Follow lanes and road signs very closely to avoid incidental swerving or lane drifting.
- If visibility is truly near zero, leverage your hazard lights and find a safe place to wait for better road conditions, such as a parking lot of a local business. If you are in a remote location and not near a parking lot, pull off the road as much as possible, turn off all lights, engage the emergency brake, and take your foot off the break to ensure your brake lights are not shining (as they could cause someone to drive into you thinking that they following traffic).