Help Clean Storm Debris from the Patapsco River

Volunteers are needed to spend a day in the park cleaning debris from Tropical Storm Sandy.

Storm Damage: Flooding, Road Closures and Downed Trees

Heavy rainfall overnight on Wednesday soaked Howard County.

A rain storm that poured down on the county overnight on Wednesday caused flooding, road closures and downed trees. The storm swept through Maryland leaving approximately two inches of rainfall in an 18-hour period, according to National Weather Service (NWS) data. On Main Street in Historic Ellicott City, the Patapsco River rose so high it nearly reached the bridge that leads into Catonsville. Officials closed Main Street in the morning due to flooding and some businesses were dealing with the after-effects. Phoenix Emporium, Great Panes and Discoveries were just some of the Main Street businesses that said they experienced flooding due to the storm. “You get used to it,” said Len Berkowitz, owner of Great Panes, who was cleaning up …

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Cooling Down in the Patapsco

It's a nice day for a dip.

Mark Shrader caught these folks spending a lazy day on the Patapsco River. And it's no wonder, temperatures have been in the triple digits for days, and today will feel no different. The high temperature will reach about 95 degrees today, and feel more like 100 with the humidity factored in, according to the National Weather Service. Why not take a dip yourself?

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Picture of the Day: Bloede Dam

The Dam may be on its way out.

The Department of Natural Resources is considering removing the 105-year-old Bloede Dam in Patapsco Valley State Park to improve safety and ease the journey of fish passing through the river.

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Action Plan Revealed to Preserve Patapsco 'Jewel'

Report lists 60 actions to mitigate the flow of nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment flowing from the lower Patapsco watershed into the Chesapeake Bay

  Here are some things you’ll be hearing a lot about in coming years, when it comes to the local ecosystem: Rain gardens. Downspout diversions. Impermeable surfaces. They’re all part of a plan revealed Feb. 28 at the Catonsville Library to help Baltimore County comply with state and federal clean water laws by reducing pollution from roads and neighborhoods that drain into local streams. The Lower Patapsco Small Watershed Action Plan (SWAP) lists 60 projects that could significantly reduce pollutants such as nitrogen, phosphorus and sediments flowing into the Chesapeake Bay, according to Nathan Forand, natural resource specialist in the Department of Environmental Protection and Resource Management. “There’s a game plan now,” said Nancy E…

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Patapsco Watershed Meeting on Tap at Catonsville Library

Meeting to discuss plan to improve lower Patapsco watershed.

Baltimore County’s Department of Environmental Protection and Sustainability is holding a public meeting from 6:30 p.m. until 8 p.m. at the Catonsville Library to discuss the Lower Patapsco River Small Watershed Action Plan (SWAP). The purpose of the plan is to identify ways to improve water quality and natural habitats in the watershed, and to outline opportunities for residents to get involved in watershed improvement activities. Communities within the Lower Patapsco watershed include Catonsville, Arbutus, Halethorpe, Baltimore Highlands, Lansdowne, Rosemont, St. Denis, Relay, and Catonsville Manor, among others in Baltimore County, and Ellicott City and Elkridge in Howard County. The Feb. 28 meeting is the third and final meeting the …

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Patapsco Sewage Main Spills Again

Leak in repaired section discovered Sept. 14, spilling 525,000 gallons of sewage into Patapsco River.

Baltimore County Department of Public Works announced that a leak was discovered in a section of pipe that had been replaced during repair of a 54-inch sewage main that ruptured on Aug. 27 during hurricane Irene. The leak in a joint of the 40-foot replacement pipe, which was installed Sept. 1, was discovered Sept. 14, according to county officials. During repair of the pipe, about 525,000 gallons of untreated sewage flowed into the Patapsco River. The spill occurred between 5 and 9 a.m. on Saturday, Sept 17., according to public works officials. The 54-inch "force main" conducts half of the sewage produced by Baltimore County, about 17 million gallons daily, from the Patapsco Pumping Station on Annapolis Road to a treatment plant in …

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Three Rescues in One Raging Patapsco River

After saving two people stranded in floodwaters, one responder is rescued by peers.

Wednesday afternoon's rescue of a swift boat rescue responder by another rescue team started with a chance sighting of two people stranded in the Patapsco River's rising waters, according to Howard County officials. PFC Nick Bingham was driving to Main Street, where flooding had led officials to close shops and institute a voluntary evacuation. On the way, he noticed two people along River Road on top of a pick-up truck that was stuck in rising water.  Bingham and an off-duty firefighter, Josh Angelo of Howard County Fire and Rescue, threw the stranded duo a life vest attached to a rope, according to a statement released by the county. One by one, Bingham and Angelo pulled the two ashore. As they reached dry land, according to the …

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