Ehrlich Asks for State of Emergency for Some Counties

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Gov. Bob Ehrlich asked President Bush Friday to declare parts of Maryland major disaster areas following a week of heavy rain and flooding that left six dead and forced the evacuation of several thousand people from their homes.

The request, which is a step toward receiving federal money to help pay for cleanup and loans for residents and businesses hit by the storms, was made for Caroline, Cecil, Dorchester, Harford and Montgomery counties. Other counties may be added later, Ehrlich said in a letter to the president.

State emergency officials spent Friday trying to assess the damage to uninsured property and public infrastructure such as roads, dams and bridges, according to Ed McDonough, a spokesman for the Maryland Emergency Management Agency. A final disaster total wasn't expected for several days. Ehrlich's letter, however, estimated state expenditures on the storm would exceed at least $10 million.

A state of emergency remains in effect in Virginia.

Evacuated Montgomery Co. Residents Go Home

Montgomery County gave the go ahead Thursday night for people who live near Lake Needwood to return home.

Some 2,200 people evacuated their apartments and homes after the dam started seeping water.

"The engineers have agreed that although seepage continues, the threat of a dam failure has been substantially reduced and, according to MDE (Maryland Department of the Environment), we are out of imminent danger of a dam collapse," Montgomery County Chief Administrative Officer Bruce Romer said in a prepared statement.

Romer says there would be an "extensive evaluation phase" to determine what long-term repairs need to be made.

Residents are being encouraged to sign up for a text message alert system through the county's Web site.

Cleanup Volunteers Needed

Volunteers are out helping residents of Huntington clean up after flooding there caused $12 million damage.

Volunteers from Volunteer Fairfax are working in two shifts Friday. Those interested in volunteering Friday afternoon should show up at Edison High School at 5801 Franconia Rd. before noon.

"We're going to be looking at mucking mud because there's still mud everywhere, pulling drywall, carpets and then heavy lifting of things that are in people's basements," says Jeanne Sanders of Volunteer Fairfax.

Volunteers also will clean items that people are not throwing out.

Storm Trash Collection

Meanwhile, trash crews are out collecting and collecting and collecting.

Fairfax County will be collecting trash and debris from the flood damaged homes in the Huntington Avenue area every day through July 11, including Saturday July 1.

The county will collect metal items, such as freezers, washers and stoves; bulk items, including carpet, furniture and damaged household goods; trees and downed tree parts; and bagged or boxed trash. For more information, call 703-802-3322.

Service Center Moves

Meanwhile, the service center at Edison High School that had been set up to help families evacuated from the Huntington area has been moved to the Huntington Community Center at 5751 Liberty Drive in Alexandria. It will operate Friday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call 703-817-7771.

Relief Fund

If you would like to help out people who have been flooded out, a relief fund has been set up. Make checks payable to United Community Ministries:

7511 Fordson Road
Alexandria, Va. 22036

Closings

Some government buildings remain closed because of flood-related problems.

Roads

A number of roads remain closed.

WTOP Traffic is continually updating the traffic incident page. Area road closures also can be found here.

Bike Paths

Part of one area bike path is closed and others are in rough shape because of the recent heavy rains. A bridge on the Washington and Old Dominion Trail in Vienna near Hunter Mill Road is closed. It's considered unsafe. There's standing water and trees down on the Capital Crescent and Rock Creek trails, plus lots of sand and mud on the lower levels of the Rock Creek Trail.

(Copyright 2006 by WTOP and The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)