The heavy rainfall this weekend that caused road closures, evacuations and auto rescues throughout the state had one silver lining ? it brought much needed relief to the Baltimore-metro area, according to the National Weather Service.
Before the rainfall, Baltimore was having its fifth-driest year in 100 years, said Andy Woodcock, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service. Dry conditions can cause water restrictions, fire danger and difficulty growing crops, he said.
“It?s going to erase some of the deficit that we have,” said Luis Rosa, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service.
However, the average yearly rainfall was still about 7 inches below normal because of dry conditions earlier this year, though more than an inch of water fell this weekend at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, Rosa said.
Heavy, widespread rainfall like this weekend?s is abnormal for the summer months, which usually are marked by hit-and-miss showers and thunderstorms, Rosa said. However, the presence of a stationary storm full of tropical moisture caused widespread showers this week, he said.
The National Weather Service predicted rain throughout the week, and Rosa said some of the heavier showers could dump an inch or two of water an hour on the region.
On Sunday, state agencies were responding to about four to five feet of rain in northern Dorchester and southern Caroline counties, said Jeff Welsh, spokesman for the Maryland Emergency Management Agency.
The State Highway Administration sent crews and dump trucks to Dorchester and Caroline counties Sunday to block off roads where the flooding was dangerous, and the Natural Resources Police sent boats to Dorchester County to help with rescues, Welsh said. The National Guard also sent a helicopter to Salisbury to monitor areas of heavy rain, Welsh said.
Welsh advised people to keep tabs on local emergency management agencies, which would relay any messages of evacuation or states of emergency. He also said to use common sense in case of flooding.
“The single best thing people can do is stay away from the water,” Welsh said.
Welsh said the state would continue providing small, controlled services to the counties “as long as it?s clear that local jurisdictions are going to require additional support.”
“Flooding is one of the regular problems. It happens,” Welsh said.
