At RFK Stadium, Parking Lot 7 may have been closed to D.C. United fans headed to Tuesday’s match against Querétaro F.C., but it was open to crows and seagulls. Scavenging birds have been patrolling the leftover mounds of trash and snow since the Blizzard of 2016.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
Feb. 11, 2016: The piles of snow in the parking lots outside RFK Stadium resemble mini mountain ranges.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
March 2, 2016: The piles of ice have withered over the weeks since the January snowstorm but many slabs of densely packed snow remain.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
There is a higher concentration of trash and dirt, which helps to insulate the ice underneath.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
Feb. 11, 2016: One of the most common forms of debris are Christmas trees that were scooped off curbs along with nearly 2,295 lane miles of snow.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
March 2, 2016: Christmas trees are the most common forms of debris in Lot 7.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
Feb. 11, 2016: The piles of discolored snow are littered with bottles, bags, books, chairs, oil filters and other forms of garbage.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
March 2, 2016: This book was sitting atop five feet of compacted snow and trash three weeks ago. Now it rests in a puddle on the ground.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
Feb. 11, 2016: The tallest peaks still measure about a dozen feet above parking lot level. The snow’s pelt of grime and filth grows more discolored by the day.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WTOP/Dave Dildine
March 2, 2016: The snow mounds on the sunnier, southern side of the parking lot have all but vanished.
(WTOP/Dave Dildine)
WASHINGTON — The snowfall from the Blizzard of 2016 is impacting an event nearly two months later. The record-breaking snowstorm’s final closing may well end up being that of Parking Lot 7 at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium.
On Monday, D.C. United tweeted that Lot 7 would be closed for the team’s first home match of the year; the giant mounds of snow that were piled in the parking areas just north of RFK remain.
A spokesperson for EventsDC says fans should park in Lots 3, 6 and 8 until further notice. The MLS home-opener is on Sunday, March 20 when they host the Colorado Rapids.
The piles of dirty snow have compacted in recent weeks. The ice is insulated by a thick pelt of trash and filth. As melting continues, more trash will likely rise to the surface but there’s no telling how long the piles will withstand springtime temperatures.
The District Department of Energy and Environment says that there are several failsafes in place near RFK Stadium, including fencing near the parking lot’s catch basins and a containment boom in the Anacostia River, to ensure the trash and sentiment doesn’t end up in the watershed.
A native to the Washington area, Dave Dildine is no stranger to the region's complex traffic and weather patterns. Dave joined WTOP in 2010 when the station launched its very own in-house traffic service. You can hear him "on the 8s and when it breaks" from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays.
