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O'Malley: State Assessing Severe Storm Damage

Primary concerns are high heat coupled with more severe weather expected late this afternoon and evening and restoring power to 800,000 people.

UPDATED (2:19 p.m.)—Gov. Martin O'Malley said state officials are assessing damage across Maryland in the wake of a severe line of thunderstorms that has knocked out power to more than 820,000 customers statewide.

In a conference call with reporters, the governor and other state officials said they are assessing the need for cooling centers as the state faces expected severe hot weather over the next several days.

Power restoration is also a priority as emergency management officials say they are tracking a line of severe storms that are expected to hit the state as early as late Saturday afternoon.

"The utilities are taking the lead on this and the counties are supporting them," O'Malley said. "We're helping [the counties]."

Across Maryland there are still more than 800,000 customers without power including more than 400,000 in the BGE service area.

BGE and PEPCO officials said that power restoration "will be a multiday effort."

Residents were warned about downed power lines and taking breaks from the heat while cleaning up storm debris.

In Anne Arundel County, a in Edgewater Friday night, according to Edgewater-Davidsonville Patch.

Montgomery County police said a Saturday morning when Fire and Rescue personnel responded to a call for a tree down on a home in the 10000 block of Grant Avenue in Silver Spring.

She was apparently killed when a large Maple tree fell through the roof and onto her bed, according to .

A PEPCO official said there was one death in northern Washington, DC related to touching a downed power line.

State officials hope to update power restoration efforts in a few hours.

"A number of substations are coming back on line in the next few hours and we'll have a better grasp of things," O'Malley said.

State transportation Secretary Beverley Swaim-Staley told reporters that state highway crews are focusing most of their efforts in Charles and Montgomery counties, where the bulk of the traffic light outages are.

State officials are also rerouting some bus routes to account for roads blocked by downed trees.

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge was re-opened today after being closed for four hours during the storm Friday night when high winds pushed an 18-wheel truck into a barrier.

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Liz Selleck June 30, 2012 at 08:57 pm
Does anyone know how the storm affected the Hillandale area of Silver Spring? I've got family on Devere Dr and I'm in Massachusetts.
Cjones June 30, 2012 at 09:00 pm
I hate to complain but I've lived in different areas and the only time I've ever lost power is when I was in an area BGE serviced and the areas I've lived in are more populated than Maryland.
Adam Thomas June 30, 2012 at 09:07 pm
How about instead of assessing the damage, restore the bloody water service to NW Baltimore city/county! People have to smell a certain way to go to work. Flushing the toilet is also a necessity. This is such crap!!!!! They're saying no water until possibly July 4th. What BS.
Zoe Cat June 30, 2012 at 09:11 pm
Gee not all places allow someone to have a generator but you are so typical of the "I got mine (F) You" mentality.
Yep you are comfortable and are taking joy in other people's pain. What a nice person.
Shirley m June 30, 2012 at 11:09 pm
Was Odenton affected? We have family we have not been able to contact. Thanks
Shirley m June 30, 2012 at 11:12 pm
It is frustrating on everyone. Give the hard working folks a break and be thankful you have homes to go home to with or without water, electricity, etc
From an Oklahoma and Colorado family
You made me laugh! June 30, 2012 at 11:45 pm
You have to wonder if you are trying to be funny because you are really good at it. The irony of you attacking people for complaining should not be lost on you if you are as smart as you seem to believe you are. All you do is complain about people who...complain? Wowser's my head hurts and so does my belly. Thanks for the laughs.
K July 1, 2012 at 12:46 am
Please bury the power lines you cheap suckers we would not have this problem!!!!
Lynne LeVere July 1, 2012 at 03:43 am
GIVE THANKS!!!!!!'
GIVE THANKS!!!!!!! Gratitude halts a bad Attitude GIVE THANKS!!!!!!!
Elise R July 1, 2012 at 05:46 am
Walmart & Target in Germantown have power; the whole complex, including PetSmart and more, is up and running. I ran out for some supplies around 8pm and it was busy, but not a madhouse. Camping supplies such as stoves and airbeds running low, I assume the beds were for people taking in extra guests who lack power. Remember any lights out are 4-way stops--some people are blowing through them and have seen several near-misses. Stay safe, good luck, hope this helps!
Elise R July 1, 2012 at 06:02 am
Pepco is the power company for that area; check http://www.pepco.com/home/emergency/maps/stormcenter/ to see outages. Looks like power outages are pretty widespread, and the news has said that Silver Spring was hit pretty hard. Hope your family is ok!
George Karadimas July 1, 2012 at 12:11 pm
At Times of emergency such as this, Human Meter readers are pressed into service to help remediate the situation and resore power.
Now that the BGE Wizards are rolling out the SMART GRID/METERS and are fixing to get the meter readers off the payroll, I would like them to explain here, how the smart meters are going to help them with the claim that they keep making, that SMART METERS will notify the utility ASAP when there is a power outtage!
ERaaka July 2, 2012 at 02:50 pm
After reading so many comments about the latest outages, the frustration is not directed at the work crews assessing and restoring power. The problem is with the infrastructure of the power grid. Why is it that for the 25 years my husband and I lived in NYC area, for example, we had just one, yes one power outage that lasted one, yes one day. The NYC grid is mega compared to DC and its surrounds. In the 11 years we have lived in Montgomery County we have experienced at least one power outage a year BUT in the past 4 years the number and duration of these outages has skyrocketed. We are in community with underground powerlines. Our home in NYC was in a heavily wooded area with above ground lines. Problems with the Pepco grid? What do you think? Power reliability within the Nation's Capital surrounds, in my opinion, is equivalent to Third World country service. Honestly, there needs to be some serious reassessment of this grid. Yes, we can all go back to creating fires with flint stones and become hunters and gatherers once again. Fine...at least we would not be paying Pepco power service. Excuses abound but actions and effective restoration plans are needed. The Washington DC grid is an embarrassment.
John July 2, 2012 at 02:54 pm
There's no real reason to invest in upgrading the system. The millions that it costs over time for BG&E crews to constantly fix everything after storms just gets tacked onto our bills. They don't pay for it - we do. If it came out of their pocket, upgrades would have started 20 years ago.
Steve July 2, 2012 at 03:04 pm
It's going to get worse after Constellation Energy's merger with Exelon. Exelon is about to get hammered on their nuke side with cost over runs on the Decommissioning of their Zion Plant in the $100's of millions. That lost is going to have to be made up somewhere.
Earl B July 2, 2012 at 03:12 pm
Chris you sound like O'Malley. He's going to kick their a** if they don't get the power on. . Gov this was a storm of storms. How many of us wanted to go to Annapolis and kick your a** when you and Mike and Mike played all session with crappy bills and waited until the last days to get a budget done. And you still had to go back into session. Take care of your own house and let BG&E do their job.
Jennifer Morris July 2, 2012 at 04:52 pm
AMEN
amdactivist July 3, 2012 at 10:32 am
BGE and Omalley don't know which end is up. Not even one bge truck seen anywhere in maryland by the many people i talked to yet thousands without power. All refrigeratoed food & med's tossed out.. Had sparking wires on my street til tuesday early morning. We all called BGE, police, State emergency crews etc and nobody came. Bordered our woods.. Its just a good thing the trees/woods remained wet or it would of been a helluva fire.. Gould lied like hell when he said they worked all weekend. He didn't want to call in bge workers and pay them double time so he ordered many from out of town companies. Cheaper at our expense. Who will pay for all the food lost. Who will pay for hospital care for those overcome by the heat and lost refrigerated meds? Omalley you really make bad choices.. Did you allow your new americans to work this crises?
amdactivist July 3, 2012 at 10:35 am
While BGE Gould thought it cheaper to hire out of town workers then pay bge workers double time for holiday weekend.. Downed sparking wires on my street from friday night til very early tuesday morning. Thanks Gould and omalley for nothing and Lying like hell that you worked all weekend. NOT!!
Genny Dill July 3, 2012 at 11:54 am
BGE should be more prepared for emergency situations. The fact is that they were not, and there is some question as to how restoration was prioritized. Much of the City did not get attended to until Monday, including senior facilities, and there are still folks here without power. O'Malley granted BGE a rate increase last December for infrastructure improvement, which we have been paying for and for which we've not seen improvement in services. So let's be real here - BGE should be more prepared for situations like this. Yes, the men and women who are working the lines are working hard, and are working in crappy conditions. I appreciate that, but this is their job, it's part of what they signed up for. If you see them out working, offer them a cold bottle of water or whatever they need to make them more comfortable, but know that they are doing their job. I'm not upset with the line workers, I'm ticked at the corporate entity that is the only ticket in town for service, that we rely on for just about every need in our lives, that each one of us pays thousands to each year, and which can't seem to get its act together in an emergency. BGE's customers deserve better. This was not the first Derecho to hit Maryland, just like last year's storm wasn't the first, and whatever storms to come won't be anything BGE hasn't dealt with before. Weather is not new, nor is the lack of preparation from BGE.
Bart July 3, 2012 at 12:28 pm
I heard a very interesting piece of information on the radio yesterday, which might explain why it seems to be taking so long to restore power.
Last summer, after hurricaine Irene, there were approx. 750,000 lost power over 48 - 60 hours. Since the hurricanie was anticipated, BGE had already brought in hundreds if not a thousand or more extra technicians, with their trucks and equipment, put them up in hotels to await the storm. This time, something like 600,000 lost power in 2 hours. It was not anticipated, so it has taken some time to get the extra hands here. Also, if you saw any of the news coverage on the clean-up, there are thousands of large trees, which must be removed very carefully, so as to avoid any additional damage to existing houses, walls, phone/cable wires etc. that might be under the trees. The trees don't just fall onto flat fields. So it would help if everybody kept their nasty thoughts under control. If you have power, see what you can do to help someone without. If you don't have power, I'm sorry, please take care. Hats off to the workers doing this strenuous work in the sweltering conditions we now have.
Al Carlson July 3, 2012 at 12:50 pm
Bart, how dare you not assign blame to the gigantic billionaire power conglomerate or the unionized lazy county employee! Your measured, logical and fact-filled post is not appreciated. I want to blame someone because I am a little uncomfortable and you are making me think twice about doing it.
Neither (D) or (R) July 3, 2012 at 01:28 pm
I heard some more stuff about the storm itself.
NOAA released some statements on the storm. They are saying this was a hundred year storm of this kind. Very, very rare. It formed suddenly in Iowa and moved across dozens of states within a few hours. The whole time building steam and size. The killer aspect of the storm was: 1) Extremely fast moving 2) Extremely high atmospheric temps 3) Very fast moving jet stream 4) The higher dew point levels on the east coast All of these factors combined to make the perfect thunderstorm with winds 80+ mph. When the storm hit the east coast it was like a plow on a truck. The pressure and winds were pressed downwards towards the ground. NOAA also said, "its was impossible to be prepared for such a storm".
Bart July 3, 2012 at 01:32 pm
Oh, Al, I am so sorry for derailing your rant! I am also sorry for your discomfort, and wish I could help. But sometimes, the truth just has to come out.
The storms were caused by a Dereche (certainly an illegal hispanic), which usually are stopped, or at least broken up by the Appalachian Mountains as they travel very quickly from the west. This time, however, the weather was so hot here that it just poured over the mountains and hit us full force. This weather pattern is also responsible for dust storms in the west and midwest, as their weather as of late has been very dry. Call it global warming, call it climate change, but I'm afraid we are in for more of the same in the future.
Neither (D) or (R) July 3, 2012 at 01:33 pm
I am blaming O'Malley, he caused the storm! I heard he approved the usage of the secret weather controlling machine which caused the earthquake in Japan, the fires in Colorado, and the tsunamis. O'Malley is trying bring attention to global warming, dam him.
Bart July 3, 2012 at 01:34 pm
There you go again, NDR. Putting some sense into the discussion!
Bart July 3, 2012 at 01:36 pm
Get out the torches and pitchforks!
Karina July 20, 2012 at 11:12 am
Storms and other nature disaster destroy people's lifes and they stay on the stree without home.
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Ronald July 20, 2012 at 11:31 am
O'Malley for President in 2016 - after all - isn'tthat what it's all about?
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