Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency after flash flooding ripped through Ellicott City, submerging the first floor of businesses.
May 28 (UPI) — Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency after flash flooding ripped through Ellicott City, overturning vehicles and submerging the first floor of businesses.
The water tore through the Main Street of the city about 15 miles west of Baltimore. The flooding comes two years after another storm devastated the historic city, killing two people and forcing people to rebuild.
Ellicott City sits on the west bank of the Patapsco River and is prone to flooding.
«They say this is a once-every-1,000-years flood, and we’ve had two of them in two years,» Hogan said Sunday.
Police said no fatalities or injuries had been reported, though WBAL-TV in Baltimore said one man was missing.
«This is a terrible, terrible time. We have some severe flooding in Ellicott City. I do encourage everybody to stay away from Ellicott City, if you’re not there. If you are there, stay safe where you are and let us know if you need help. Of course, we have rescue folks in Ellicott City now. We’re doing the best we can to help anybody that needs help,» Howard County Executive Allan Kittleman said.
Electric company BGE said 1,411 people in Howard County were without power and there were 1,964 total outages in Baltimore City, and Baltimore, Anne Arundel, Harford and Carroll counties. The company also said there could be has outages.
