Update: http://patch.com/maryland/laurel/laurel-wakes-damages-last-nights-storm-0
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The following Sep 30 City of Laurel press release urges area residents, businesses, and organizations to check their properties for recent storm damage - such damage is expected to have extended beyond City of Laurel .
National Weather Service Alerted After Storm Causes Major Damage In Laurel
Laurel Mayor Craig A. Moe is urging residents to check their property for damage after a powerful storm in the City Tuesday Night.
The area was pounded with strong wind and punishing rain--more than three inches in 55 minutes.
“It wasn’t until people got up this morning that we discovered the true magnitude of this storm,” Mayor Moe says. “ We’ll be working with residents and business owners to make sure they can get back on their feet quickly.”
The Senate Select Insurance Company at 300 Main Street has some major debris to clean up after the storm tore a hole in the building’s roof.
“ I hope we can get that repaired right away,” owner Bobbi Dustin says. “This is our livelihood.”
The Prep salon in the same building also has water and debris inside its business after the storm. Elsewhere on Main Street, signs were torn on their posts, and many properties had roof damage. A tree fell on a car on Second Street, and several others trees came down on property and vehicles in North Laurel.
Deputy City Administrator Marty Flemion says his office has notified the National Weather Service about the pattern and path of the damage last night.
“ It’s too early to say exactly what it was other than an incident of high sustained winds that hopscotched from Route 198 and 197, came down and did damage, to Main Street—came down and did damage, and into North Laurel, same thing,” Flemion says.
City Officials went up in a lift to survey the damage. They also used a drone owned by Richard Kluckhuhn of Laurel Fuel Oil to get a bird’s eye view. Early indications, although not confirmed, point to either a tornado or microburst.
Flemion says City of Laurel Code Enforcement officers will be checking properties to make sure they are safe for people to enter. They will also be working on a proclamation to make it easier for residents and businesses in the Historic District to make the necessary repairs.
Audrey Barnes
Director of Communications
City of Laurel
301-456-6430 (cell)
@LaurelPio
2015
