With more bad weather looming, Virginia officials sought to reassure the public Thursday as they reacted to harsh criticism of their response to a snowstorm earlier this week that left hundreds of motorists stranded on Interstate 95 in frigid temperatures.

In contrast to his response to Monday’s storm, Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency in advance of the wintry weather that is expected to move into the state late Thursday, and he asked the Virginia National Guard for assistance. The measures are necessary this time, his office said, because of the lingering effects of the first storm.

Also read: Colorado wildfire caused $513 million in damage: Officials

Northam also pushed back against the criticism, questioning why drivers were out in force on the highways when they had been warned to stay home, while some experts and officials from other states said they saw little Virginia could have done to prevent the logjam that occurred amid snowy conditions on I-95, the East Coast’s longest north-south artery.

Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Brian Moran told The Associated Press on Thursday that no one brought the escalating problems to the attention of the governor’s Cabinet promptly on Monday. A county official eventually called him in the middle of the night.

Also read: 5 prominent people banned from social media since US Capitol riots

Virginia officials have promised to review the state’s response, though how exactly how they will do that is unclear. During an unusually detailed news briefing Thursday to discuss upcoming weather preparations, a Cabinet secretary suggested a joint investigation is possible; others have said each state agency would conduct its own inquiry.

Similar investigations in other states have resulted in revamped alert systems, additional snow-clearing equipment and more aggressive road treatments.

Also read: Watch: Space X launches its first Falcon 9 rocket of the year

In Virginia, state lawmakers, local officials, at least two members of Congress and the AAA auto club called for action. Stafford County Board of Supervisors Chair Crystal Vanuch, a Republican and lifelong county native, said Thursday that the gridlock was “probably the biggest disaster we’ve ever seen.”

According to Vanuch, the county’s emergency operations command received roughly 1,800 calls for service over a 24-hour period — more than five times the normal amount — and local emergency workers told her they weren’t getting the help they needed from state officials.

Also read: 13 COVID positive passengers of chartered flight from Italy to Punjab escape from hospital

She said she called Moran at 1 a.m. Tuesday and that by daybreak, state officials had begun deploying resources, including helicopters to survey roads and see where the worst choke points existed.

Northam, a Democrat who leaves office later this month, said in an uncharacteristically combative interview Wednesday that he was “getting sick and tired of people talking about what went wrong.”

Also read: Maskless passengers filmed partying on flight won’t be flown home

He told radio station WRVA that no one was injured and that people should be thanking first responders and emergency workers.

In a conciliatory follow-up statement Thursday, Northam said he was trying to express his appreciation for police troopers and other workers who had put in 30 to 40 hours straight under difficult circumstances.

In the statement, he also said he had compassion for drivers who were stuck in a “scary situation” and reiterated his commitment to doing “everything possible to keep this from happening again.”

Also read: US Capitol riots: Facts and figures of charges, arrests made so far

Many motorists reported being offered little in the way of assistance while they were stuck in the traffic on I-95, which according to officials began Monday morning after a commercial vehicle jackknifed. As heavy, wet snow poured down, more cars and trucks became disabled, further tying up traffic and preventing plowing. Traffic eventually ground to a total halt, leaving some travelers stranded for over 24 hours.

Officials had said that pretreating the roads was not an option because the storm started as rain, which would have washed any brine-chemical solution away.

Also read: Bodycam footage shows cop shoot without warning at man firing into air

Transportation experts and officials elsewhere acknowledged the difficulty.

“If we have an event that’s going to start as rain and transition to snow, we do not pretreat, because it would be a waste of time and money,” Ohio transportation department spokesperson Matt Bruning said Wednesday.

Also read: Alaska Air trims January flights to cope with COVID outbreak

Andy Alden, a transportation researcher at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, said from his perspective, the state did “everything just about right.”

Recent high-profile traffic pileups in other states led to revamped systems that appeared to help stave off future catastrophes.