Flooding

Forecasters are watching an expected outbreak of severe weather from Illinois to Maryland that some are likening to last June's derecho; one meteorologist predicted it would be a "multi billion dollar storm" causing massive power outages. Storms were developing in Illinois and Wisconsin early Wednesday evening, bringing tornado threats from there through Indiana and into Ohio. Meteorologists say conditions could be conducive for those storms to strengthen into a massive squall line packing up to 70 mph winds, large hail and heavy rain.

The Harford County Department of Emergency Services urges Harford County residents to prepare for a squall line of thunderstorms with heavy rain, lightning, hail, high winds and higher tides as a result of a fast moving and severe weather event approaching the region Thursday. As storm moves across the state, Harford County and other areas of Maryland could feel the effects, the county government warned in a news release issued Wednesday. The Harford County Department of Emergency Services recommends residents to prepare for the storm by reviewing their storm survival plan and restocking any needed food, water or other supplies to get them through the storm.

More than 10,500 customers lost electricity and roads were closed due to high water Sunday evening as two thunderstorms swept through the region. Baltimore City police reported shortly after 9 p.m. that parts of I-83 were flooded. The ramp from I-83 southbound onto West Northern Parkway was flooded. Northern Parkway to Coldspring Lane was closed. In Baltimore County, scattered outages left intersections dark. Police precinct 3, the Franklin precinct, may have been struck by lightning that caused a power outage, police said.

A lightning strike injured a Cecil County zookeeper, half-dollar-sized hail fell in several counties and tornado sightings sent people scurrying for shelter from Rockville to Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. Yet the worst fears of weather forecasters didn't materialize Thursday. The National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center called the first of two systems that darkened skies and dumped rain Thursday a "low-end" derecho, known for powerful winds that travel in a straight line over hundreds of miles.

Flooding from Sunday night's storm has closed several lanes on Interstate 83, stalling the southbound morning commute at Northern Parkway to the downtown exits. Only one lane remains open after standing water from heavy rains forced the closures about 9 p.m. The ramp from I-83 southbound onto West Northern Parkway remains closed. Transportation officials say no other Baltimore roadways are closed due to flooding at this time, but Baltimore County also reported localized flooding.

WASHINGTON - Officials at Reagan National Airport have evacuated part of a gate area and closed off one terminal's baggage area after a problem with a pipe caused flooding. A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, Tara Hamilton, said Saturday that flooding was ankle deep in the terminal C baggage claim area. That baggage claim was closed as were about a dozen gates in terminal C, Hamilton said. The airport has three terminals. Hamilton said it was unclear how many flights were affected, but they were primarily US Airways flights.

Harford County emergency officials are warning residents to watch out for potential flooding and dangerous driving conditions because of the heavy rains falling Friday from the remnants of Tropical Storm Andrea. A robocall was sent to court residents shortly after 11 a.m. Friday telling them to be wary of standing water in roadways and not to drive through it, but to turn around and go back instead. The county has been placed under a flash flood watch by the National Weather Service until 10 p.m. Friday, county Emergency Operations Manager Rick Ayers said in the call.

More than 10,500 customers lost electricity and roads were closed due to high water Sunday evening as two thunderstorms swept through the region. Baltimore City police reported shortly after 9 p.m. that parts of I-83 were flooded. The ramp from I-83 southbound onto West Northern Parkway was flooded. Northern Parkway to Coldspring Lane was closed. In Baltimore County, scattered outages left intersections dark. Police precinct 3, the Franklin precinct, may have been struck by lightning that caused a power outage, police said.

Fears of widespread coastal flooding from a combination of high tides and the snowstorm's high winds did not materialize, though Ocean City officials are expected to examine the town's beaches today. Concerns about flooding along the state's coastline were raised Saturday, as officials worried that high winds from the east would push the already high tide ashore, leading to floods and significant erosion. In Ocean City, where beach and dune replenishment has been taking place, engineers are expected to check the shoreline for erosion.

Tuesday is already Baltimore's rainiest day since at least April 19, and with heavier showers possibly to come, forecasters cautioned of possible localized flooding in the evening hours. More than half an inch of rain had fallen at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport from 9 a.m. through 2 p.m. Another half an inch is possible in the afternoon and evening hours, according to the National Weather Service. Showers are expected to continue into the early hours of Wednesday morning for Central Maryland, according to the weather service.

Minor storm damage was reported from the remnants of Tropical Storm Andrea in Harford County, where it rained steady most of the day. As early as 7 a.m., Carsins Run in the 600 block of North Gate Road in Aberdeen was reported to be overflowing, according to a damage summary report from the Harford County Emergency Operations Center. Also Friday morning, the 700 block of Girard Street in Havre de Grace was flooded and inaccessible, and trees were reported down on Furnace Road a half mile from Route 152 and at Franklinville Road and Sycamore Drive in Abingdon, closing the road.

Harford County emergency officials are warning residents to watch out for potential flooding and dangerous driving conditions because of the heavy rains falling Friday from the remnants of Tropical Storm Andrea. A robocall was sent to court residents shortly after 11 a.m. Friday telling them to be wary of standing water in roadways and not to drive through it, but to turn around and go back instead. The county has been placed under a flash flood watch by the National Weather Service until 10 p.m. Friday, county Emergency Operations Manager Rick Ayers said in the call.

Firefighters rescued a person trapped in a car in Howard County after heavy rain Thursday night led to flash flooding, fire officials said. A fire department spokesman said one person was rescued from a car stuck in the flood waters near the intersection of McKendree Road and Rover Mill Road in West Friendship about 8:30 p.m. That person was not injured, nor were four members of the rescue team, he said. The National Weather Service called a flash-flood warning Thursday night for northwestern Howard County and north Montgomery County.

Maryland corrections officials are taking advantage of new technology designed to block the use of contraband cellphones by inmates - a problem at the heart of recent indictments at the Baltimore City Detention Center. In a program being used at another prison facility in Baltimore, phones smuggled inside have been severed from the network and rendered inoperable, officials said. The new system, which the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services hopes to expand, could supplement efforts to find the phones using metal detectors or trained dogs to sniff them out. The department says it is catching more illicit phones than ever - more than 1,300 were found in the last fiscal year - but the federal indictments show the limits of those efforts.

Tuesday is already Baltimore's rainiest day since at least April 19, and with heavier showers possibly to come, forecasters cautioned of possible localized flooding in the evening hours. More than half an inch of rain had fallen at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport from 9 a.m. through 2 p.m. Another half an inch is possible in the afternoon and evening hours, according to the National Weather Service. Showers are expected to continue into the early hours of Wednesday morning for Central Maryland, according to the weather service.

At last, more insight into Don Draper's psyche. Now that old Don is back, most of season six's sins have been cyclical, from revisiting adultery and prostitution to a hefty resurgence in Don's liquor bill. The reboot of old Don has sometimes made this season repetitive and dry. But it's to serve a point: Don's stuck in a vicious cycle of debauchery as a means to self-medicate. But can he change? This episode, on the other hand, was shocking -- filled with feelings of panic and anguish, rather than dread lingering from season five.

Free at last from February's record snows, Marylanders face what could be record rainfall and potential flooding this weekend. Flood watches were posted statewide as a slow-moving coastal storm gathered strength Friday and prepared to drive heavy Atlantic moisture onshore overnight and through most of today. Forecasters expected the heaviest rains overnight and today, with at least 2 inches to 4 inches falling before ending Monday. Some locations could see 5 inches or more - more than a month's rain in one weekend.

A $1.5 million federal grant will help pay for rebuilding the downtown Annapolis City Dock, including upgrades to stormwater management controls to reduce frequent flooding. "City Dock is arguably the city's most important asset, and first and foremost, we need to be responsible stewards of the assets we have," said Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen. An overall $12.5 million rehabilitation project for the dock involves stabilizing and rebuilding 700 linear feet of City Dock's bulkhead, as well as the stormwater measures and upgrading slips used by transient boaters who visit Annapolis.

Baltimore City Police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts is still relatively new on his job, so it's probably unfair to make too much of his unfortunate response to a question last week about the recent spate of gun violence that left nine people dead on the city's west side. "Though we're having a spike in homicides," Mr. Batts said, "our organization is working better, faster and smoother, and you can see it in the overall stats. " There was nothing factually wrong in Mr. Batts' answer; department statistics show an 8 percent drop in crimes of all types over this time last year.