City, county officials prepare for potential impact of Hurricane Florence

Sept. 11--As Hurricane Florence moves inland, threatening regions of the East Coast, local elected officials and emergency management personnel are readying for potential storm impacts.

According to a news release issued on Tuesday by Patti Mullins, city human resources coordinator, Frederick Mayor Michael O'Connor and local emergency management officials are encouraging residents to be prepared.

On Monday, Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency to facilitate mobilization of National Guard assets, facilitate fuel and other resource movement, and allow the filling of prescriptions early through the Maryland Insurance Administration, if necessary.

According to the release, Jack Markey, director of the Frederick County Division of Emergency Management, is advising residents to prepare for potential flooding, which may happen in the next few days. The storm has the potential to produce torrential rain that could overwhelm storm drains and cause basement or other structure flooding, the release said.

Marc Stachowski, the city's deputy director of public works, said employees are also maintaining and monitoring public infrastructure to protect public and private property to the best of their ability.

The release included several tips to avoid flood damage and injuries, such as clearing leaves and debris from storm drain intakes and drains near basement entry points; checking periodically to make sure the drain intake area remains free of leaves and debris; removing or securing objects such as trampolines, trash cans, lawn furniture, toys, and plants in yards that high winds could pick up; checking to make sure sump pumps are working properly; and readying chain saws for downed trees.

For a list of roads in the city that commonly flood, go to https://www.cityoffrederick.com/DocumentCenter/View/11202/2018-Known-High-Water-Areas.

The hurricane track, found at https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/, determines what level of impacts the area will experience. Localized emergency alerts are also available at https://www.frederickcountymd.gov/4727/Emergency-Alerts, and road closings are available on a map at https://tinyurl.com/y7k3g2nc.

City officials and members of the Frederick Police Department will also post information on social media. You can follow them on Facebook, Twitter and Nextdoor.

Follow Mallory Panuska on Twitter: @MalloryPanuska.

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