More than 10,000 people are still waiting for power to return in Howard County after a storm ripped through the region and knocked out power across Maryland.
As of Monday night, 11,875 Howard County residents were still without power, reported BGE, with nearly 50,000 people in the county who now have their power restored.
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BGE efforts have included more than 1,300 out-of-state workers who are responding to power outages across the state, the company has said.
State officials reported that six people have died in Maryland as a result of Friday night’s storm.
In Howard County, 14 schools will be closed Tuesday; all activities at those schools are also cancelled, the school district announced. Eighteen schools in the county were closed on Monday from the power outages.
Patience was waning Monday among those still waiting for power to be restored.
"I think at 5 Saturday afternoon, I was ready for power to come back on," said Howard County blogger Lisa Schlossnagle, a mother of three from Fulton. "My sense of adventure is gone. It’s been challenging not to grumble and complain."
Meanwhile, county businesses, libraries and cooling centers have seen hundreds come through their doors in search of refuge.
- At least 40 people have used the showers offered to non-members at the Dancel Famly Center Y in Ellicott City, staff said Monday.
- At least 600 people visited the Elkridge branch of Howard County Library Sunday, which was open as a cooling shelter, staff said.
- On Saturday and Sunday, The Columbia Association’s outdoor pools welcomed 1,127 Howard County residents whose power was out and who had come to cool down for free, according to the CA.
Stories of the storm and its manifestations spilled out Monday.
In the Mount Hebron neighborhood in Ellicott City, one resident said the debris from two storms made his yard “like a war zone.”
Xiaojun Jie said he is considering moving – not because of the power outages, just to have more space as his family grows. But if he doesn’t move, he said he will need to buy a generator.
“Every time there’s a weather event and people lose power,” he said, “We are those people.
“There’s no chance to escape.”
A total of 200 dogs were without power (along with the employees who cared for them) at the Preston Country Club for Pets on Old Columbia Pike; employees there said they were unable to notify owners due to power outages.
Employees sought refuge from the heat by going outside.
“In a word, it’s hot,” said Josh Arnold. “Hot, sticky and gross.”
The heat is expected to continue, with highs of 92 expected in the area Tuesday.
A resident in the Valley Mede neighborhood in Ellicott City had her own strange storm story to tell: When a branch fell onto a power line near her home Friday night she said, "It caused a shower of sparks and a small fire that fused the fallen branch into a pine tree."
On Monday in King's Contrivance, one family watched a tree service remove a giant pine tree that had fallen on their home as a result of the storm.
Paul Caci, who works from his Columbia home, said, "I told my boss today, here’s the situation—we have a tree on the house."
See related coverage:
Day 3 Without Power: Residents Try to Cope
200 Dogs Without Power at Columbia Pet Care Center
Neighborhood Power Outage: 'No Chance to Escape'
'A Shower of Sparks' in Valley Mede
WATCH: Giant Tree Removed from Columbia Home
- With reporting from Brandie Jefferson, Andrew Metcalf, Elizabeth Janney and Brian Hooks
rm
4:51 am on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Hello, I am a resident of Yorkshire Drive. I am currently out of the country. I would greatly appreciate any information about any damage in that area. Thanks.
mk
4:55 pm on Tuesday, July 3, 2012
I am a resident of Ramsgill Court.. I haven't been down Yorkshire past the far end of Ilkley Moor, but in general I've not seen any substantial damage to trees and buildings within Brampton Hills. Sure there's a lot of smallish (under 2" diameter) branches down all over the place, but I haven't seen any large limbs or whole trees down. This is unlike other nearby areas like 104 where I've seen a lot of trees down. This very much surprised me, as I watched the storm bend trees in my yard in very unnatural ways. Overall we seem to have been pretty lucky damage wise.
Power wise we were without power from the onset of the storm Friday Night until Monday morning, and I believe the whole neighborhood was the same. The rain wasn't heavy enough for the lack of sump pump to be an issue for me or anyone I've spoken to. I'd consider everything in the fridge/freezer highly suspect and probably worth tossing if it is perishable.