Thousands of Baltimore-area residents were without power late Wednesday after a fast-moving storm pummeled the region with heavy rain and winds.
“It did get dark rather quickly and winds increased. We had rains where you couldn?t even see across the street,” said Bill Mould, Howard Fire Department spokesman.
The storm swept through the area around 4 p.m., leaving in its wake felled trees and power lines.
High winds were expected to be considered the cause of a crane collapse at Sparrows Point steel mill in Baltimore County.
Two workers were in the crane at the time of the collapse, but workers weren?t injured, said a spokesman for Severstal, the Russian firm that owns Sparrows Point in Dundalk. The effect on plant operations was unclear.
In Howard, fire officials received a “significant” number of calls for downed power lines and about a dozen vehicle accidents, Mould said.
By about 4:15, the storm had edged out of central Maryland, and the rains from this wave of storms were expected to have subsided by 5:30 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.
A tornado watch was in effect for Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Harford and Howard counties and Baltimore City until 8 p.m., according to NWS.
“These are very fast-moving thunderstorms that moved through the area,” said David Manning, acting regional warming coordination meteorologist for NWS.
A second line of storms was entering the area from the west but was expected to hit south of the Baltimore area, he added.
“There?s still potential for severe weather while the tornado watch is in effect,” Manning said.
About 100,000 Baltimore Gas and Electric customers were without power Wednesday evening with more reports of outages expected.
“The numbers are rising very quickly,” BGE spokeswoman Linda Foy said.
Staff Writer Aaron Cahall contributed to this report.
