Record rainfall inundates D.C., parts of Maryland
By
Adriana Navarro, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Sep 11, 2020 2:53 AM EDT
Storms brought several inches of rain to the Washington, D.C., area. Torrential flooding hit this street in Aspen Hill, Maryland, on Sept. 10.
After an intense onslaught of rainfall over the Washington, D.C., metro area on Thursday, water rescue teams set out to respond to stranded drivers caught on inundated roads.
"Some tropical moisture being pulled up from the Southeast ahead of an approaching cold front helped to fuel heavy thunderstorms with high rainfall rates," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brian Thompson said. "Some of the heaviest rain fell right in Washington, with nearly 3 inches of rainfall at Reagan National Airport, much of that falling in two hours."
The airport recorded 2.88 inches of rainfall, setting a new daily rainfall record for Sept. 10. The old record had been 2.89 inches, set back in 1950. However, the heavy rain within a short time frame caused flash flooding, including across Route 50 east of Kenilworth Avenue, bringing traffic to a halt.
National Weather Service gauges recorded about an 8-foot rise in water level near Rock Creek at Sherrill Drive, Washington, D.C., leading to moderate flooding. Up to 6.35 inches fell over Hyattsville, Maryland, and 3 to 6 inches of rainfall were common in areas near D.C.
A spokesperson for Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department in Maryland said Thursday evening that crews responded to half of the number of calls that they usually receive within 24 hours in just four hours.
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"We received somewhere around 250 calls over a four-and-a-half-hour period," Jennifer Donelan of Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department said during an update on Thursday evening. "Our crews are telling us that what they saw out there today was unprecedented. And to give you an idea, we normally respond to around 430 calls in a 24-hour shift."
As of the time of the update, about 134 of the calls for service were water-related. The number of people rescued was unclear at the time as Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department await for crews to return.
"There can be a spotty shower or two across southern Maryland and the D.C. metro area on Friday, but conditions will turn much drier heading into the first part of the weekend as a wedge of drier air sinks southward," AccuWeather Meteorologist Renee Duff said.
"The next chance for rain will arrive late Sunday and Sunday night with an approaching cold front, but this batch of rain should not rival the intense downpours that led to Thursday's flash flood event," Duff said.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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News / Severe Weather
Record rainfall inundates D.C., parts of Maryland
By Adriana Navarro, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Sep 11, 2020 2:53 AM EDT
Storms brought several inches of rain to the Washington, D.C., area. Torrential flooding hit this street in Aspen Hill, Maryland, on Sept. 10.
After an intense onslaught of rainfall over the Washington, D.C., metro area on Thursday, water rescue teams set out to respond to stranded drivers caught on inundated roads.
"Some tropical moisture being pulled up from the Southeast ahead of an approaching cold front helped to fuel heavy thunderstorms with high rainfall rates," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brian Thompson said. "Some of the heaviest rain fell right in Washington, with nearly 3 inches of rainfall at Reagan National Airport, much of that falling in two hours."
The airport recorded 2.88 inches of rainfall, setting a new daily rainfall record for Sept. 10. The old record had been 2.89 inches, set back in 1950. However, the heavy rain within a short time frame caused flash flooding, including across Route 50 east of Kenilworth Avenue, bringing traffic to a halt.
National Weather Service gauges recorded about an 8-foot rise in water level near Rock Creek at Sherrill Drive, Washington, D.C., leading to moderate flooding. Up to 6.35 inches fell over Hyattsville, Maryland, and 3 to 6 inches of rainfall were common in areas near D.C.
A spokesperson for Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department in Maryland said Thursday evening that crews responded to half of the number of calls that they usually receive within 24 hours in just four hours.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
"We received somewhere around 250 calls over a four-and-a-half-hour period," Jennifer Donelan of Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department said during an update on Thursday evening. "Our crews are telling us that what they saw out there today was unprecedented. And to give you an idea, we normally respond to around 430 calls in a 24-hour shift."
As of the time of the update, about 134 of the calls for service were water-related. The number of people rescued was unclear at the time as Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department await for crews to return.
"There can be a spotty shower or two across southern Maryland and the D.C. metro area on Friday, but conditions will turn much drier heading into the first part of the weekend as a wedge of drier air sinks southward," AccuWeather Meteorologist Renee Duff said.
"The next chance for rain will arrive late Sunday and Sunday night with an approaching cold front, but this batch of rain should not rival the intense downpours that led to Thursday's flash flood event," Duff said.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo