As snow, ice and sleet are expected to strike the Heart of Virginia later Saturday afternoon into Saturday evening, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) and Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) are encouraging people to prepare for the storm and to stay safe as roadways are expected to be affected.

To prepare one’s homes or vehicles for the storm, VDEM encourages people to never use a generator, grill, camp stove or gasoline, propane, natural gas or charcoal burning device inside one’s home, garage, basement, crawlspace or any other partially enclosed area, to not keep pets inside for prolonged periods of time and to check on elderly or disabled neighbors and relatives.

VDEM and VDOT encourage people to know the road conditions in their homes before leaving, to prepare their vehicles such as making sure vehicles are well-stocked with gasoline and testing batteries before cold weather strikes.

Motorists are cautioned to not travel unless absolutely necessary. If traveling, motorists are asked to snow down when encountering snow plows and to give them the right-of-way.

To learn more, visit www.vaemergency.gov/prepare-recover/threat/prepare-recover/threats/winter-weather/

To view road conditions, visit www.511virginia.org.

In the event of power outages, contact Dominion Energy at 866-366-4357 or Southside Electric Cooperative at 1-866-878-5514.