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Possible tornado touches down in southern Carroll County, 2 hurt, 2700 homes without power.
http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/2009/07/possible-tornado-touches-down-in.html
By Kevin Dayhoff July 27, 2009 1:30 AM

Sykesville - Several violent thunderstorms ripped through southern Carroll County Sunday evening. The storm downed trees and power lines, damaged cars and 37 homes; and kept the Sykesville Freedom District Fire Company busy past midnight.

The Baltimore Gas and Electric Company reported 2700 homes without power as the evening wore-on.

The first call for help was received by the Sykesville fire department at 5:52 pm. Before the evening was over, the department had responded to over 39 – 911 calls including one call in which two persons had to be extricated from a vehicle struck by a fallen tree, according to Sykesville fire department chief Ed Ruch, Sr.

It was moments earlier, at 5:40 pm that, according to “The Emergency Email and Wireless Network”: “the National Weather Service in Sterling Va issued a severe thunderstorm warning for N. Howard County in central Md. So. central Carroll County in No. central Md. and southwestern Baltimore County in N. Md. until 645 Pm EDT.

“At 538 Pm EDT. Natl Weather Svc Doppler Radar Indicated A Severe Thunderstorm. This Storm Was Located 9 Miles West Of Sykesville.& Moving East At 25 Mph.

“Locations Impacted Include: Sykesville, Eldersburg, Gamber, Oakland, Ellicott City, Randallstown, Owings Mills, Milford Mill, Reisterstown, and Lochearn. Hail To The Size Of Pennies Can Be Expected In The Warned Area.”

An article by Clay Myers on the Gamber and Community Fire Company website reports “One very large old tree at the corner of Sunset and Liberty Lake Drive in Eldersburg blew down on top of a car during the sudden storm. For more information and pictures, click here.

“Units from Sykesville Freedom District Fire Department, Liberty Road Volunteer Fire Company (Baltimore County), and Gamber & Community Fire Co. were alerted for a tree on a car with people trapped at approximately 6:07 pm.

“First arriving units reported multiple persons trapped. Remaining units arrived from different directions and conducted a rescue operation. Numerous neighbors had already started using chain saws to remove limbs from the car. Two children were rescued and sent to Johns Hopkins Hospital Pediatric Emergency Room by ambulance.”

Meanwhile, firefighters from the Sykesville department worked late into the night going door-to-door in the three-mile area around the Oak Hill, Locust Lane, Liberty Road, and Macbeth Way area of the county checking on citizens and doing a damage assessment.

For several hours in the late evening an emergency response command center was set-up at the Sykesville fire station conference room to coordinate the response to the damage and an evacuation shelter was set-up in the station’s social hall staffed by members of the Red Cross and the Sykesville fire department auxiliary.

The command center was staffed by members of the Sykesville fire department, Maryland State Police, Carroll County Sheriff’s Department, the Carroll County Emergency Management Division, and the Carroll County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

In the command center, Sykesville department public information officer Dennis Beard and county emergency management division representative Chrissy Calp helped coordinate the county emergency response efforts with the county roads department, Vivian Laxton, the county public information officer and Chief Ruch, who served as the incident commander.

At the command center, Major Tom Long of the county Sheriff’s Department said sheriff’s department deputies would maintain heightened patrols throughout the night and into Monday.

Chief Ruch said that “come daylight people will be surprised as to how much damage was done to the area.”

According to several citizen reports, the widespread damage was caused by what appeared to have been a tornado.

A funnel cloud was reported to have spotted as citizens scrambled for cover. Firefighters reported trees “twisted” and damaged in swath that travelled east to west across the region.

As midnight fell upon the station, the last of the firefighters who had gone door-to-door returned to the fire station with a house-by-house list of the damaged properties and reported that portions of at least four roads remained closed: Raincliffe, Oakland Mills, Liberty Lake Drive and Slacks Road.

In other parts of the state, WJZ Channel 13 reporter Mike Schuh “reports the damage in Baltimore County was widespread…

“‘Within the darkness, I saw from the corner of my eye, a really dark snarling mass. I guess a funnel cloud was going to go right through the door," said one onlooker.’

“‘We all ran into the basement, stayed there for about a minute or two, and then realized that it passed by,’ said another man.

“The storm packed hail and high winds.

“There were more than 20,000 people without power just in Baltimore County.”

For more of Mr. Schuh’s report, click here.

Kevin Dayhoff writes from Westminster. E-mail him at kevindayhoff AT gmail.com.

For the latest information see http://www.explorecarroll.com/
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20090727 d1 sdosm Possible tornado touches down so CC

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