Snow

1. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow Hancock's Winter Festival will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, at Widmeyer Park, West High Street, Hancock.The main event is the snow sculpture contest for individuals, families and groups. There will also be a live auction, hat contest, live music by Michael Kligerman and other attractions. Snow will be donated by Whitetail Resort. Call 301-678-5719. 2. Spotlight on conservation Appalachian Trail Short Film Festival will be Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Appalachian Trail Conservancy Visitor's Center, 799 Washington St., Harpers Ferry, W.Va.

A light snowstorm that is predicted to hit the Tri-State area overnight might make roads a little slick for drivers this Sunday. National Weather Service Meteorologist Carrie Suffern said Saturday afternoon that a storm might drop an inch of snow before sunrise Sunday. Erin Wolfe, Hagerstown communications manager, said the city Public Works Department was monitoring the storm. “If the weather should worsen, they'll send the (salt-truck) crews as appropriate,” she said.

The Maryland State Highway Administration has work crews prepared for the weekend in case of any inclement weather, but nothing has been mobilized in or near Washington County yet, according to SHA Spokesman Charlie Gischlar. "There is a chance of snow flurries on Sunday, but that is still two to three days out," he said. "The temperature is supposed to decrease dramatically this weekend. " According to the National Weather Service's website, http://forecast.weather.gov , the high in Hagerstown on Friday was expected to be near 54 degrees with winds between 18 and 22 miles per hour and gusts as high as 33 mph. A low of 32 degrees is expected Friday night.

Winter storm warnings for Washington County and the surrounding area were lifted Saturday morning after a mixture of snow, sleet and freezing rain coated the region, the National Weather Service said. The warning for Washington County, Md., and Morgan, Berkeley and Jeffrerson counties in West Virginia, was canceled at 10:25 a.m. the weather service said. A subsequent winter weather advisory was lifted by 12:30 p.m. A winter storm warning for Fulton County, Pa., and a winter weather advisory for Franklin County, Pa., were lifted at 10 a.m., according to the weather service.

Scattered snow showers are expected throughout Hagerstown until 4 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. The total daytime accumulation of snow could possibly be as much as one inch. Winds between 18 and 20 mph are also possible, with gusts as high as 32 mph, according to the NWS.  With temperatures below freezing, small amounts of snow could possibly cause icing in spots on the road today and tomorrow, according to the Hazardous Weather Outlook for Hagerstown provided by the NWS. There also is a chance of flurries for Wednesday afternoon and evening.  After snow fell in the area this morning, there were three accidents on Interstate 70 and three on Interstate 81, all in Washington County, before 7:15 a.m., according to a supervisor for Washington County Emergency Services.

An unexpected dusting of snow that didn't measure as precipitation on weather instruments slickened roadways and caused several traffic accidents Tuesday morning across Washington County. The snowfall caught road crews by surprise because it wasn't in the weather forecast, said Ed Plank, director of the Washington County Highway Department. "We didn't expect it to hit," said Plank, noting that about 20 of the county's 40 salt trucks were on the road by about 7 a.m. "We got a little behind the eight ball .... We weren't expecting any accumulation.

Phillip Kenneth Snow Jr., 74, of 21926 Leitersburg/Smithsburg Road, Smithsburg, Md., passed away Saturday, Dec. 31, 2011, at Meritus Medical Center. Born Monday, Aug. 9, 1937, in Mount Union, Pa., he was the son of the late Phillip Kenneth Snow Sr.and the late Nina (Wareham) Snow Naugle. He was employed as manager for Martin Marrietta Stone Quarry in Hagerstown for 10 years, and for the past 35 years has been the owner of Mr. Softee Water Treatment & Pump Service, retiring in 2002.

What Mrs. Claus doesn't know won't hurt her, right? Well, after a tiring night of delivering Christmas presents around the globe, Santa Claus hopped on his snowboard Friday to break in the new manmade snow at Whitetail. Well, not exactly. Santa, aka Cole Barrett, 16, Alexandria, Va., thought it would bring holiday cheer to Whitetail's opening day on Friday if he dressed as St. Nick. "Everybody is saying, 'Hi,' to Santa, and I'm saying, 'Hi,' right back," said Cole, who couldn't wait to hit the slopes.

Between 2 and 4 inches of snow had been expected to fall in most areas starting about 8 p.m. Wednesday and ending around midnight, according to the National Weather Service. However, given the recent warm weather and road-pavement temperatures well above freezing Wednesday, state highway officials were leaning toward a "minor event" for travel Thursday morning in Washington County, said David Buck, spokesman for the Maryland State Highway Administration. State highway officials were not anticipating problems on Interstate 81 or Interstate 70 in Washington County on Thursday morning.

The National Weather Service has issued a winter weather advisory from 7 p.m. today through 1 a.m. Thursday for Washington and Frederick counties in Maryland; Morgan, Berkeley and Jefferson counties in West Virginia; and Franklin and Fulton counties in Pennsylvania. Rain is expected to change to snow, with the heaviest precipitation falling between 8 p.m. and midnight. Accumulation of 2 to 4 inches of snow is expected in most areas, with 3 to 5 inches possible in higher elevations.