Community Corner

(Updated) 19,974 Without Power in Howard County

In some cases, power won't come back until the weekend, BGE officials said.

This story was updated at 10:30 a.m. Monday

About 20,000 people remain without power in Howard County, amid warnings from BGE that power restoration efforts for some could extend into this weekend.

BGE has restored power to 34,547 Howard County customers since Friday’s storm, the company reported as of Sunday night.

Find out what's happening in Elkridgewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Outages are scattered across portions of the county, said Nancy Lewin, a spokesperson in the Howard County Emergency Operations Center, which is coordinating storm response efforts.

Main Street in Ellicott City has power back to “at least some businesses,” Howard County government spokesman Kevin Enright said Sunday.

Find out what's happening in Elkridgewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The George Howard building also has gotten its power back.

Non-essential Howard County employees were granted liberal leave for Monday, July 2. Gov. Martin O'Malley said that only essential state employees must report for work Monday as well.

A total of 18 schools in Howard County are closed Monday. All schools in Elkridge are open.  asked parents to encourage children to "use caution if they walk...as many sidewalks may still have tree limbs and/or debris."

BGE officials likened the damage from Friday night’s storm to that of a hurricane or tropical storm, and said nearly 900 out-of-state utility workers are involved in restoration efforts.

Meanwhile, highs are expected to reach 91 degrees Monday in Howard County.

Cooling centers are open Monday at all county libraries, as well as the Gary J. Arthur Community Center, the and any county government building that has space available, county officials said.

The State Highway Administration is also urging motorists to use caution.

“This is a very serious situation and drivers need to be patient and allow extra time to commute in the morning as many traffic signals may still be without power,” said SHA Administrator Melinda Peters in a press release. “At a signaled intersection where traffic lights are not operating, it is imperative to treat it as a four-way stop, but remain extra cautious of other drivers that may think they have the right-of-way.”

Howard County officials said Sunday their biggest concern was clearing area roads.


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