UPDATED (5:01 p.m.)—County residents in need of drinking water can fill their containers at area fire stations, and will soon be able to drop off their storm debris there too.
County officials made the announcement during a brief news conference Monday afternoon in Towson.
Fire Department Chief John Hohman said the county plans to place trash bins at county fire stations and allow residents to drop off their storm debris. The plan mirrors what the county did last fall after Hurricane Irene, when it allowed residents to drop off tree and brush debris only.
The bins will be available beginning 9 a.m. July 3 at the following additional locations:
- Arbutus Volunteer Fire Station - 5200 Southwestern Boulevard
- Bowleys Quarters Volunteer Fire Station - 900 Bowleys Quarters Road
- Eastview Fire Station - 1056 Old Northpoint Road, Dundalk
- Lutherville Volunteer Fire Station - 1609 Bellona Avenue
- Parkville Fire Station - 8530 Old Harford Road (dumpster will be on the parking lot of American Legion next door)
- Pikesville Volunteer Fire Station - 40 E. Sudbrook Road
- Randallstown Fire Station - 10010 Liberty Road
- Westview Fire Station - 6300 Johnnycake Road
Only storm-related tree debris will be accepted at the eight fire station locations, which will be open all week including July 4.
Debris can also be taken to the county's three regional drop-off centers:
- White Marsh—6259 Days Cove Road, White Marsh, MD 21162
- Cockeysville—201 Warren Road, Cockeysville, MD 21030
- Halethorpe—3310 Transway Road, Halethorpe, MD 21227
The regional drop-off centers are closed on July 4.
Residents in need of drinking water can bring their own containers and fill them from hoses at local fire stations, but urged residents to call first, Hohman said.
County residents without power can recharge their phones and computers at area libraries, assistant Fire Chief Kyrle Preis said.
"The libraries love having more people visit them," Preis said.
Some libraries do not have power or have closed due to lack of air conditioning. The Arbutus Library is closed and the Catonsville Library closed at 5 p.m. Monday.
So far, the county has cleared nearly 380 intersections since the storm rolled through the area late Friday. Still, there are about two dozen intersections where traffic lights remain without power or are otherwise obstructed.
Police Chief Jim Johnson asked residents for continued patience as storm recovery efforts, and power restoration are expected to continue through the end of the week.
County residents can get updates on the county's storm recovery efforts on Twitter.
You sir/madam, are absolutely clueless. Just where is "the power source"?
Have a little faith, and start up the grill next time you hit day 2 or 3 of a power outage. Make the best of the situation and grill everything you have and drink up. Consider the alternative...a tree could have fallen on your house/car with you inside.
Truth is, we've been prepared for anything since Agnes, which was probably before many of you were born. Plenty of 'non-perishables' indeed. Our pantry is equipped for a Nuclear Attack, and we can hole-up for a couple of months if need be. It's still tough to lose everything in the fridge after day 3, and that was just for safety's sake. The coolers bought some extra time, but ice melts, and Dry Ice wasn't available for Irene. Nobody's advocating lack of safety on BG&E's part, but our 'hood was an easy fix. "Everybody" for six blocks around us had power by day three, and that's exasperating. No trees down, no wires sparking, just a simple breaker to restore, of which our community has three, I heard them all trip during 'heavy rain.No Lightning, Tornado or Wind Shear, just 'heavy rain !!! Y'all have a happy and safe Fourth. Hopefully we won't get any 'heavy rain, it's too hard to keep the "Grill" going when that occurs, and the ole lady gets upset when I bring it into the house. (L.O.L.)