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Another catastrophic flash flood hits Ellicott City, Maryland, two month’s worth of rain in less than 2 hours

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Nearly two years after what was called a '1-in-a-1000-year' event ravaged Ellicott City, Maryland, the city experienced yet another major flash flood on Sunday, May 27, 2018. The storms dumped more than two month's worth of rain in less than 2 hours, causing massive damage and leaving one person missing.

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared the State of Emergency as major flash floods wreaked havoc across the city and forced Ellicott City residents to rush to safety for the second time in two years.

Many residents were caught by surprise and dozens of cars were trapped as fast-moving waters rushed through the city. Authorities confirmed that numerous water rescues were conducted by emergency crews.

"This is an extremely dangerous and potentially catastrophic situation and you must move to higher ground immediately and stay away from anywhere where water is moving," NWS Baltimore said.

Howard County government said the damage was worse than on July 30, 2016, the last time this city saw catastrophic flash flooding. There are no confirmed fatalities at the time but one person is reportedly missing.

Howard County Fire and EMS said there were reports of building collapses and a gas leak broke out, causing an evacuation of the west end of Main Street.

As of 18:10 EDT Sunday, 246.6 mm (9.71 inches) of rain had fallen near Catonsville, Maryland. Typically, the Baltimore area receives around 101 mm (4 inches) of rain during the entire month of May.

The incredible rainfall rates caused the Patapsco River near Catonsville, Maryland, to rise above 5.4 m (17.8 feet) in less than two hours, setting an all-time record at that location, AccuWeather reports

FOX 5's Mike Thomas says the flooding was further affected by the continued rain and wet weather that has been affecting the region for the past 10 days.

Drier weather is expected for the rest of the week, except on Tuesday afternoon when a cold front could trigger a shower or thunderstorm.

Featured image credit: DieRobinsonDie

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3 Comments

  1. Once again, Elliott City, MD, was hit by flash flooding, reminiscent of the flash floods that hit the city on July 30, 2016. The same businesses that had been badly damaged in the previous floods had repaired their damaged spaces, using the flood insurance payments they had received.
    After the flash flooding of April 27, 2018, these very same businesses are much less likely to be compensated, since the insurance companies that had compensated them nearly two years previously are unlikely to compensate them again, and this doesn’t bear well for Ellicott City. Without the various businesses providing tax money, the city may well be doomed, and that’s the real tragedy.

  2. Why oh why are past floods not mentioned? Answer, past flooding events don’t count as those events were weather, now climate change is all the rage and past events are null and void.

    From wiki……The town is prone to flooding from the Patapsco River and its tributary the Tiber River. These floods have had a major impact on the history of the town, often destroying important businesses and killing many. Ellicott City has had major devastating floods in 1817, 1837, 1868,[58] 1901, 1917, 1923, 1938, 1942, 1952, 1956, 1972 (Hurricane Agnes), 1975 (Hurricane Eloise), 1989, 2011, 2016, and 2018.

    The floods shall continue until solar maximum returns.

  3. This latest catastrophic flash floods that hit Ellicott City, MD, may doom the city, as businesses that lined Main Street were once again badly damaged by the walls of water that swept through the city.
    In the flash floods two years ago, businesses and residences were badly damaged, and insurance companies paid out vast amounts of money to fund the repairs, but this time, these businesses will most likely move elsewhere, and Ellicott City won’t ever be the same again. This is the worst tragedy, in that these same businesses that were paid out in flood insurance money two years ago will, most likely, not receive flood insurance compensation this time around.

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