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Local deaths pile up as Washington region digs out from Blizzard of 2016 Local deaths pile up as Washington region digs out from Blizzard of 2016
(about 11 hours later)
The Blizzard of 2016 had already claimed at least seven lives in Virginia and Maryland as of Sunday morning — and that toll seemed likely to rise as residents began digging out. A veteran U.S. Capitol Police officer died Saturday after suffering a heart attack while shoveling snow outside his home on the Eastern Shore of Delaware, one of several people who died during the massive snowstorm.
Most of the deaths had a common thread: They appeared to be due to overexertion. Officer Vernon J. Alston was 44 and had spent nearly two decades patrolling the Capitol grounds. He was known to lawmakers yet so humble about his job that he failed to tell his wife when he chased down and subdued a theft suspect a couple months ago.
Three men — two from Maryland and another from Northern Virginia— died of heart attacks Saturday while shoveling. Another Virginia man collapsed trudging home through waist-deep snow early Sunday morning after working a shift at a convenience store. “He was the type of man who wanted to help people,” said his wife of seven years, Nicole Alston, 42, who works at the National Zoo. “In his mind, he was a superhero.” She also said: “He would help you, but he was modest about it. That’s how he lived his life: Being an officer allowed him to come to their rescue.”
At least seven deaths in Virginia, Maryland and the District were attributed to the blizzard as of Sunday evening — and that toll seemed likely to rise as residents continued digging out. Most of the deaths had a common thread: They appeared to be linked to overexertion.
[Snowzilla is done with us but the cleanup is just beginning][Snowzilla is done with us but the cleanup is just beginning]
Emergency responders said Sunday morning that they were expecting similar emergencies as more people leave their homes and begin to clear sidewalks and driveways. Three additional deaths were reported in southern Virginia — one of them a car crash and two from hypothermia. Three men — two from Maryland and another from the District— died of heart attacks while shoveling. An 82-year-old man died in Northeast Washington on Sunday, officials said. On Saturday, a 60-year-old man died in Prince George’s County in Fort Washington, and a 49-year-old man died in Abington, about 30 miles northeast of Baltimore.
In Maryland, a 49-year-old man shoveling snow in the northeast area of the state died after suffering a heart attack Saturday afternoon, according to authorities. A Leesburg man had a heart attack and collapsed while trudging through waist-deep snow early Sunday. The man, in his 50s, was heading home after working at a convenience store that had stayed open during the storm. A resident called 911 and pulled the man inside a nearby home, but emergency responders were unable to revive him.
The death occurred in the town of Abingdon, in Harford County, about 30 miles northeast of Baltimore, just off Interstate 95. Cindy Mumby, a spokeswoman for the Harford County government, confirmed the death. No other details were released.
Mumby said there were several heart attacks reported in Harford County on Saturday, including another that was fatal in Bel Air, but the one in Abingdon was the only one related to the snowstorm.
And on Saturday morning, a 60-year-old man died while shoveling snow at his home in Fort Washington, in Prince George’s County.
Meanwhile, in Virginia, officials said that a Leesburg man had a heart attack and died early Sunday morning while walking through waist-deep snow in an attempt to go home after working at a convenience store that had stayed open through the storm.
The man, whose identity has not been released but was in his 50s, collapsed around 2 a.m., police said. A resident saw him fall into the snow, called 911 and pulled the man inside a nearby home. Emergency responders were unable to revive him.
“If the gentleman had been walking home on a sunny day, he probably would be alive,” said Leesburg Police Lt. Brian Rourke, attributing the fatality to the historic snowfall.“If the gentleman had been walking home on a sunny day, he probably would be alive,” said Leesburg Police Lt. Brian Rourke, attributing the fatality to the historic snowfall.
The man had tried to drive home after his shift at the convenience store, located on the 700 block of Fieldstone Drive Northwest. But the man abandoned his car after it got stuck and tried to walk the rest of the way home, Rourke said. Rourke would not disclose the man’s identity or the name of the store until family members had been informed. Three other deaths were reported in southern Virginia — one of them a car crash and two from hypothermia.
In all, at least 19 others deaths have been attributed to the massive blizzard that struck some Southern states and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. Authorities are investigating whether other deaths are connected to the storm. Prince William County officials said a man who had been shoveling snow Friday collapsed and died.
Another man died in Maryland after he was found unresponsive Sunday in deep snow near a shopping center in Laurel, according to Prince George’s fire officials. They said the man appeared to be homeless. His cause of death was not immediately clear.
In all, at least 19 other deaths have been attributed to the blizzard that struck some Southern states and Mid-Atlantic regions.
Alston’s death was announced by the office of Senate Minority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.). “For 20 years, Officer Vernon Alston was a fixture on the Capitol grounds while keeping the community safe,” Reid said in a statement.
Nicole Alston said her husband was helping neighbors shovel snow in their small town of Magnolia, Del., near Dover Air Force Base, when he came into their home about noon to take a break. He then went into the garage, screamed his wife’s name and collapsed. “He was pretty much gone,” Nicole Alston said.
Emergency workers had to shovel a path to the house, Nicole Alston said. She said that a tow truck had to pull the ambulance so it could reach the street and that her husband was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.
Nicole Alston said her husband had just begun his 19th year with the U.S. Capitol Police force. She said she worried about her husband doing police work, but she was more concerned about his commute, more than 90 miles each way between Magnolia and the District. She made the same commute as well, to the zoo, where she has worked in administration for 13 years, but their differing schedules meant they could not carpool often.
“He was a very genuine man,” Nicole Alston said. “People looked at him as a counselor. People came to him for advice. He had a genuine love for people.”
Nicole Alston first encountered her future husband in 1992 when they were students at Howard University. “He would watch me at Howard,” she said, though she didn’t know it at the time. “He told me he had always wanted to say something to me.”
That opportunity didn’t come until 15 years later, during a chance meeting outside the U.S. Capitol. He was on patrol and Nicole was walking by. They chatted. “He remembered me from back then” Nicole Alston said. “He remembered my face. He remembered what I studied.”
They married six months later. He had a son and daughter from a previous marriage, she had a daughter, all of whom are now teenagers. The couple had one child together, Breyden, who is 3.
“It is a beautiful story of how I met him,” Alston said. “He was the man of my dreams.”
Paul Kane and Michael Laris contributed to this report.