Not Singing, But Working in the Rain

When it’s raining, I like to stay inside, eat soup and listen to records. But I dragged myself out today to see how the roads and communities along the Patapsco River were holding up.

The National Weather Service issued a flood warning and a flood watch earlier today and is forecasting a total of 2 to 3 inches of rain which could lead to “flooding of low-lying areas” and swelling of small streams and creeks. Runoff from those smaller streams contributes to rising rivers.

I took a drive down to River Road, which winds along the Patapsco to see if there had been any flooding. Sure enough, water flowed from streams on the other side of the street into the river, and in some places, water in the river had risen to street level and was slowly pooling on the road.

On Ilchester Road, along the Catonsville – Ellicott City border, I spotted something I wasn’t expecting. Two guys who looked like they were fishing.

"In this rain?," I thought. "Weirdos."

So, of course, I went to go talk to them. Turns out Michael Meyers and Luke Myers were not fishing. They were collecting sediment samples for the U.S. Geological Survey -- and seemed pretty excited to be standing out there in the rain.

“Usually the river will crest in the middle of the night,” Meyers said, so it was nice to be able to be out during the day. “We’ll come out here whenever it’s base flow and clear,” he said, “as well as for these events.”

The two leaned over the bridge, fiddling with what looked like a model rocketship attached to a pulley system. The rocket collected river water and bits of particulate matter that scientists will use to better understand how much material is being transferred from one spot to another after the removal of two dams in the past year or so.

Understanding sediment flow will also give researchers a better idea of how the river itself is changing as more dams are removed.

They'll be out on the river collecting samples throughout the year.