Residents and officials across the Baltimore region are assessing the damage Thursday afternoon after severe storms and strong gusts rolled across portions of Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia in the late afternoon and evening.
The National Weather Service issued a staggering 22 tornado warnings Wednesday for the Baltimore-Washington region, one of the highest counts on record for the area’s forecast office.
The last time a storm system exceeded that number of tornado warnings was in April 2011, when forecasters issued 23 for the region, said Erik Taylor, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
Multiple people took to social media overnight to share footage of funnel clouds in Montgomery County and possibly Baltimore, though the National Weather Service is still confirming the sightings.
Meteorologists have used drone footage to confirm at least one tornado touched the ground east of Brookeville. Five people were rescued from a home in Gaithersburg after a large tree fell on it.
Downed trees and power lines
In Baltimore County, emergency management officials said they’re assessing storm damage to a mobile home park in Bowleys Quarters. One injury was reported, along with structural damage to trailers in the mobile home park, officials said.
“We were pretty lucky,” said County Councilmember David Marks, a Republican who represents the area.
Anne Arundel County saw minimal damage, though there were reported power outages, emergency officials said. Howard County officials said trees were downed in the storm but that officials were still inspecting the jurisdiction for damage Thursday.
Harford County officials were not aware of any tornado sightings Wednesday evening. Most of the damage was found in southern areas of the county. More than 150 calls for service came in during the height of the storm, about 18 of which related to water rescues and structural collapses. About 20 roads that had closed during the storm from flooding and high water were reopened Thursday.
In Howard County, officials said no injuries were reported and damage was limited to downed trees and one downed light pole.
As of Thursday afternoon, Baltimore Gas and Electric’s outage map showed just over 1,400 customers were being impacted by power outages.
The National Weather Service is compiling a report on the extent of the storm and subsequent damage, though it may not be ready for days, Taylor said. Crews were expected to be in the field Thursday along with state emergency management officials.
In the meantime, meteorologists expect more rounds of showers and thunderstorms Thursday, some of which could produce heavy rain and severe conditions. The greatest risk for storms as of 2 p.m. Thursday was in areas along and across the Chesapeake Bay, according to the National Weather Service.
This is a developing story.
Baltimore Banner reporters Rona Kobell, Royale Bonds and Abby Zimmardi contributed to this report.
