Baltimore County said it expected to start clearing side streets on Saturday evening, after bringing on additional equipment. Even so, officials said plowing wouldn’t be complete until Monday evening.
From Ellen Fishel, reporting from Harbor East
Strong, cold winds coming off the harbor didn't stop several couples from walking around in Harbor East on Saturday afternoon.
Meredith and Devin Russell had ventured outside with their black Labradoodle, Charlie. So far, the storm hadn't been as bad as the Harbor East residents expected.
"We're originally from Boston, so this is nothing," Devin Russell said
Charlie, however, was much more excited about the weather than his owners. It was the first time the 4-month-old had seen snow, Devin Russell said.
The dog frolicked in the snow banks created by snow plows, which were working throughout the neighborhood. Most stores in the area were closed, but the CVS at the corner of South Exeter and Fleet streets remained open.
From Carrie Wells, reporting from Hampden
Trudging along the Avenue in Hampden, Patrick Troneman was wrapped from neck to toe in black plastic trash bags. He had to shovel out the front of Harmony Bakery, where he works, and didn't have the right gear.
"I decided to improvise a little bit with some leftover black plastic bags, to help keep the outer layer dry," said Troneman, of Hampden. "It's working very well, and the key is that my underlayers are all wool. So the underlayer is staying dry and the bags are helping me."
Bonnie Crawford Kotula, 35, went down to the Avenue in Hampden with her two children, Hank, 2, and Emmet, 5, to walk around and play. Emmet, she said, "was actually conceived during the blizzard of 2010."
"We call him our Blizzard Baby," she said.
Crawford Kotula said she grew up in South Carolina and loved the snow.
"We had school closures when we had an inch of snow when I was growing up, so just the sight of snow is exciting to me," she said.
From the Mayor's office:
Mayor Rawlings-Blake has implemented Phase III of Baltimore City's Snow Emergency Plan beginning at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 23, 2016.
The Phase III designation means that only authorized emergency vehicles are permitted on Baltimore City roadways: police, fire, ambulance, snow plows and BGE emergency response vehicles. All hospitals should keep all staff in place for the duration of Phase III.
The designation comes amid increasing difficulties traveling the roads and poor visibility, and many four-wheel drive vehicles are getting stuck.
The Phase III designation is currently planned to expire at 6 a.m. on Sunday, January 24, 2016. But if conditions warrant, the designation may be extended.