What if it Snowed, and No One Declared an Emergency?

[tomchampion.livejournal.com]

This was another landmark day for inaccurate weather forecasting. By 2:30 p.m., weather.com simply put up a notice for Somerville's detailed forecast that said "Forecast data no longer valid." (It's still there as I write these words -- you can look: http://www.weather.com/weather/wxdetail/02143?from=36hr_bottomnav_undeclared.)

In Somerville, what was supposed to be 1-2 inches turned into 4+. But the Mayor decided that with all available DPW crews still on the roads anyway, and with kids already in school and adults already at work, there was little point in declaring a midday emergency that would send people scrambling.

The stalled mini-Nor'easter that fooled all the meteorologists has now finally abated, and it looks like the Mayor made the right call. Anecdotal reports from drivers coming into the city suggest that Somerville's streets are, on the whole (I know there are exceptions), clearer than those in Boston and Cambridge, but you can still drive anywhere in the immediate metro area.

Please rest assured that, had this been an actual emergency, the Davis Square LJ group would have received swift notification.

Stay cozy; drive carefully.