Community Corner

Day 4 Without Power: Thousands In Howard County Wait

"In a word, it's hot," - Josh Arnold.

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.

Out of power? Let us know where.  .

Find out what's happening in Ellicott Citywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

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 in Maryland as a result of Friday night’s storm.

Find out what's happening in Ellicott Citywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In Howard County, 14 schools will be closed Tuesday; all activities at those schools are also cancelled, . from the power outages.

Patience was waning Monday among those still . 

"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 at  in Ellicott City, staff said Monday.
  • At least 600 people visited the Sunday, which was open as a cooling shelter, staff said.
  • On Saturday and Sunday, 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 “.”

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 (along with the employees who cared for them) at the 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 .

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 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:

14 Schools Closed Tuesday

 

- With reporting from Brandie Jefferson, Andrew Metcalf, Elizabeth Janney and Brian Hooks


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