Inches

The third wet winter weather system to pass through Maryland in a week was expected to add to the young season's snow tally Saturday, but a late start and some drier air could make it difficult except in areas north and west of Baltimore. Snow was beginning to taper off southwest of Baltimore by early afternoon. The National Weather Service is expecting an inch or less in the Baltimore area, with 1-2 inches further north and 2-4 inches possible along the Mason-Dixon Line. Rain and sleet are expected to mix in for areas along the Interstate 95 corridor and points south.

Forecasters are calling for a third wintry weather system to pass through Baltimore in less than a week to drop 1-2 inches across Baltimore and areas close to the water, with 2-4 inches further inland, according to the National Weather Service. Carroll, Harford, Howard and northern Baltimore counties are under a winter weather advisory from 3 a.m. through 6 p.m. Saturday, issued by the weather service's Baltimore/Washington forecast office. The advisory could later be extended southward, but as of Friday morning, there was still disagreement in forecast models predicting where the rain/snow line could fall, according to a forecast discussion . While snow could fall throughout the day in northern and western parts of the state, to the southeast, temperatures are expected to warm enough for rain to mix in with the snow during the day, according to the weather service.

A broken water main that had the potential to affect 2,600 homes and business in eastern Baltimore County has been repaired and water pressure was restored Wednesday morning, a city public works spokesman said. Crews discovered the break in the 12-inch water main on Simmons Avenue, along a water main leading to the Colgate Water Tank in the county, about 3 p.m. Tuesday, said Kurt Kocher, a public works spokesman. The affected homes were along Eastern Avenue in the Eastwood and Colgate areas.

Heavy rains dropped more than 1.5 inches on parts of Howard, Carroll and Baltimore counties Tuesday, prompting flood warnings. The heaviest rains fell to the northwest of the Interstate 95 corridor, along a stretch from western Montgomery County to the northwestern tip of Harford. Most areas west of I-95  received at least half an inch of rain, with more than an inch over a wide swath and 1.5 to 2 inches in isolated areas, according to radar estimates . The National Weather Service issued flood warnings for urban areas and streams in Howard, Carroll, Baltimore and Montgomery counties at 12:37 p.m. through 3:30 p.m. Flooding closed some roads in Montgomery, according to the warning.

100 Years Ago Hail to red hats In the Times news briefs: "Hail 16 inches deep is reported in Frederick, upper Howard and Carroll counties last Wednesday night. "The hail storm Wednesday night killed 500 English sparrows in part of Baltimore county. Let's have another hail storm. " This sounds harsh, but it would be many decades until PC - political correctness - was invented. And, since at that time people were slaughtering beautiful, exotic birds at an alarming rate, the sequitur is that little brown sparrows would rate little compassion.

A broken 10-inch-wide water main in Southwest Baltimore caused a sinkhole to open on Frederick Avenue near its intersection with East Lynne Avenue late Tuesday night, according to city officials. The water main was shut off and Frederick Avenue was closed at the intersection, in the city's Mill Hill neighborhood, said Kurt Kocher, a public works spokesman. Repairs were scheduled to begin Wednesday morning, Kocher said. Police said they were on the scene helping to divert traffic.

A flash flood warning has been issued for west central Howard County and north central Montgomery County, according to the National Weather Service. Up to three inches of rain had fallen on the area as of about 8:30 p.m., and up to two additional inches of rain were expected, the service said. The warning is in effect until 11:45 p.m., the service said. krector@baltsun.com twitter.com/rectorsun

Activists trying to trigger a referendum on Maryland's new congressional map were within striking distance of their goal Monday, with the state's Board of Elections accepting 46,700 names after analyzing about 80 percent of the signatures submitted. The count shows that the repeal effort, led by Republican Del. Neil Parrott of Western Maryland, is close to the goal, though success is not assured. Maryland law requires 55,736 valid signatures to trigger a referendum. Republicans have argued that the new map is a gerrymandered swirl of lines, drawn to add a seventh Democrat to the state's eight-member delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives and to give Democratic incumbents the neighborhoods they desired.

It wasn't the neon-green comb tucked in a loose-leaf notebook that caught the eye of a TSA screener at BWI Monday morning — it was what the comb concealed: a knife with a 4-inch blade. Pamela Whitfield, 31, of Hampton, Va., was charged with carrying an unauthorized weapon through airport security, a misdemeanor, after an X-ray machine operator noticed an "unusual image," said Kawika Riley, a Transportation Security Administration spokesman. The comb was lying along the binder's spine among some papers and a folder.

He didn't fall — but it looked like he came close. Daredevil Nik Wallenda made it nearly all the way across a wire over the Inner Harbor, stepping steadily and deliberately, when he stopped to kneel and pump his fist in the air. He was walking 300 feet across, up to 82 feet in the air, in a stunt to mark the imminent opening of a Ripley's Believe It or Not museum. The rapt crowd, cell phone cameras in the air, sighed with relief. But their celebration — and Wallenda's, too — was premature.