Garrett County

A storm packing heavy winds and rain struck two Western Maryland communities yesterday evening, causing an undetermined number of power outages and downed trees, state police in Garrett County said. At least 15 houses in Accident and Friendsville, in the northwestern part of the county, were damaged, but no injuries were reported, police said. The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh said officials would survey the area today to determine whether a tornado touched down. Meteorologist Rich Cain said he had received reports of funnel cloud sightings in Preston County, W.Va.

When Camilla and David Rawe bought their five-bedroom, two-story brick home in Garrett County's Grantsville in 1986, they had five of their six children and were in the market for a spacious house, convenient to David Rawe's veterinary practice, schools and parks. Years later, the family discovered they owned a vintage classic built by Harvey Gortner in 1940, using plans from one of 15 showcase homes at the 1939 New York World's Fair. Designed by architect Perry M. Duncan, the World's Fair house was dubbed a "fire-safe home" for its solid construction and use of materials such as glass-block panels and metal insulation.

MCHENRY -- An overflow crowd of about 500 people packed a public hearing in Western Maryland last night, most of them strongly opposed to a proposal to allow wind turbines in state forests. "It's the very character of the mountains and the state forests that define who we are," said state Del. Wendell R. Beitzel, a Republican from Garrett County. "I beseech you to relay to the governor and other people that we don't want wind turbines on our land." Pennsylvania-based U.S. Wind Force is proposing to build about 100 turbines in the Savage River and Potomac state forests in Garrett County.

When Garrett County Chamber of Commerce President Charlie Ross sees the spike in sales taxes the county has sent to the state over the last five years, he does not see money going out of the county. He sees money coming in. "You're seeing the money [that] people from outside Garrett County spent here," Ross said. "By and large, the figures on tourism have grown generally between 5 and 10 percent every year for the last five years." Garrett County saw some of the highest growth in sales taxes per person between 2001 and 2006, while having some of the lowest population growth during the same period.

Carole Caines of Pasadena heard of an old saying about the "dog day" cicadas, the annual variety that start singing in the hottest days of July or August. When they pipe up, she says, "count (X) days, and that will be your first frost." But she forgot how long to count. I've heard 45 days, or six weeks, which might work for the Midwest, or Garrett County. Not here. Six weeks gets us to mid-September. East of the mountains, average first frosts are in October.

Man gets 30 years for killing deputies A man who shot and killed two sheriff's deputies in 2002 has pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder. James Logan was sentenced yesterday to 30 years in prison. Logan shot Prince George's County Sheriff's Deputies Elizabeth Magruder and James Arnaud when they went to his parents' Adelphi home to take him into custody. The deputies had a warrant to take Logan in for a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation. Logan confessed to the crime, but his lawyers argued that he should be acquitted because of mental illness.

There are wonderful things to see and learn about everywhere you turn in Maryland. From Antietam National Battlefield to the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse. From the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad to the Appalachian Trail. Even the Patterson Park Pagoda is pretty wonderful. At least that's what Sun readers said last month when we asked them to name the seven man-made wonders of Maryland. The responses were so diverse and deserving that narrowing down the list became a not-so-wonderful task.

The state Court of Appeals cleared a California energy company yesterday to build what would be Maryland's first windmill farm, a 42-turbine facility along Backbone Mountain in Garrett County. The wind farm was approved by the Public Service Commission in 2003, though it was not built because the developer, Clipper Windpower Inc., initially was unable to induce utility companies to buy power from the facility. The project now has utility customers and is expected to proceed. The PSC's approval was challenged in court on environmental grounds.

It's been said that there are Ocean City people and there are Deep Creek Lake people. We have no idea who said this or what it even means. This much we know: Both these classic Maryland destinations lure visitors with sun, sand and water. So, decide for yourself where your vacation loyalties lie. Are you a lake person or an ocean person? Memorial Day weekend launches the summer vacation season with travelers packing cars, trailers and suitcases with sunscreen, bathing suits and towels, and scrambling out the door with neither map nor Mapquest directions in hand.