Catonsville Recovers From Floods After 10 Inches Of Rain

CATONSVILLE, MD — More than 10 inches of rain fell in Catonsville during Sunday's flash floods, based on preliminary reports, and road closures continue Tuesday as the community recovers. Both the weather and the response were significant, according to County Executive Donald Mohler, who said emergency personnel and county employees have worked around the clock to keep the community safe.

Mohler called the event a "horrific storm" that hit "primarily the west side" of Baltimore County, in the Oella and Catonsville areas as well as Ellicott City.

"To put what happened in perspective, a 100-year storm is considered 8 inches of water in a 24-hour period," Mohler said.

"According to our weather and our emergency folks, we had 10 inches of water in the Catonsville-Oella area in about four to five hours," he added, "so that gives you some sense of how forceful this particular storm was."

Weather spotters reported these rainfall totals to the National Weather Service:

• 5.2 inches of rain in southeastern Catonsville at 8:10 p.m. on Sunday
• 10.38 inches of rain in northeastern Catonsville as of 8 p.m. on Sunday.

"The first thing I wanted to do was thank our first responders and county employees," Mohler said Monday at a press conference. "They worked throughout the night."

In addition to rescuing people, firefighters pumped floodwaters out of hundreds of basements, he said, while public works crews cleaned street, cut trees and removed debris.

Their combined efforts were intended "to get Catonsville, Oella and other parts of the county back up and functioning," Mohler said. "They did incredible work, and I can't thank them enough for that."

He also commended neighbors, businesses and relatives for helping one another.

"You really do get the sense of community and that Baltimore County is a very good place," Mohler said. "We care deeply about one another."

After being named the county executive last week, Mohler remarked that the county had just come through two challenges: the sudden death of County Executive Kevin Kamenetz from a heart attack on May 10 and the homicide of Baltimore County Police Officer Amy Caprio on May 21.

"This is another challenge," Mohler said the day after the May 27 storm. "We will get through this."

Road Closures

This is a list of road closures in Baltimore County at noon Tuesday (click the link for the most updated list):

• Oella Avenue at Westchester Avenue
• River Road at South Hilltop Road
• Old Frederick Road at Bryans Mill Way
• River Road at Thistle Road

Frederick Road/Main Street in Ellicott City remains closed from Oella Avenue to Ellicott Mills Drive.

The Avalon area in Patapsco Valley State Park is expected to remain closed for the next several weeks. Bikers, hikers and other park patrons are asked to access other park areas. The closure includes Avalon, Glen Artney and Orange Grove areas that are accessible using the South Street off Route 1.

The ongoing construction project to remove the Bloede Dam will take about two weeks to recover. The Patapsco Valley State Park site lost two bridges and a couple pieces of equipment, but there appears to be no damage to the new work.

State Of Emergency

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan declared a statewide state of emergency on Sunday, May 27, which enables the state to coordinate assistance to any communities battling flooding. The governor urged Marylanders to avoid the Ellicott City area while crews perform rescue operations and work to assess the damage .

"We are heartbroken to see the devastation that occurred yesterday in Ellicott City, and the serious flooding in multiple jurisdictions across our state," Governor Larry Hogan in a statement on Monday. While Ellicott City was the hardest hit, he said there was significant flooding in southwest Baltimore County and Baltimore City.

During the storm, Maryland State Police had to temporarily close the outer loop of Interstate 695 between I-70 and Washington Boulevard in Baltimore County, where 3 feet of water had made the road impassable.

• Flood Leaves Ellicott City ‘Devastated, Heartbroken’
• National Guard Member Missing Following Ellicott City Flooding
• Frederick Avenue Closed After Flood In Baltimore
• All Of Maryland Under State Of Emergency After Flooding
• Ellicott City Flood: How To Help And Where To Get Assistance

Main pictures, Thistle Road flood on May 27, 2018. Photos courtesy of Baltimore County Police and Fire.