Thunderstorms Unleash Flooding On Dundalk

Mother Nature’s roar of thunder and lightning – as ominous as Sunday's dark clouds – gave a foreboding of what was to come to the residents of the Brentwood Avenue corridor in Dundalk yesterday afternoon.

The National Weather Service reported as much as 2.5 to 3 inches of rain fell in the area, leaving behind flooded basements and cars, and memories of similar past flooding episodes.

The Peterson home in the 6700 block of Brentwood Avenue faced a wall of water in front of their home and waist-high flooding in their basement. 

Anthony Peterson said he saw a pickup truck attempt to plow through the flooded street in front of his home, only to be halted when the water rose up over the hood of the truck. A wave of water lifted Peterson's own parked car onto the curb, indicating the power of the flooding.

Inside his home, Peterson remained surprisingly calm, coordinating a plan of action that kept him focused on the issue at hand – getting his home back in order.

The first step was to pump the standing water out of his basement as fast as possible. No easy task after his sump pump burned up after the flood blocked the outlet for the water to escape. 

He needed to contact insurance company, he said, and dispose of damaged dry wall and other destroyed household items. And he began mapping out a plan to contract a damage control specialist, and contractors, noting the details necessary to repair his home and property. 

I was impressed with his calm ability to deal with the tremendous adversity since this was not the first time his home had been flooded as a result of heavy storms.  Even when describing the personal records that would be lost, he seemed resilient, accepting that these items were gone and the important thing was to move forward.

Joyce and Gary Jones were not as optimistic and appeared worn down by this storm. Their basement that was completely under water. They lamented that this is the third time they had to endure the ravages of the water and pointed to the storm drain behind their house as part of the problem.

Joyce Jones said the insurance would not cover any of their loses as they were not considered to be in a flood zone. At one point, the water was waist deep in front of their home.  Visibly upset, she said that they had to go through this ordeal for the third time, and subsequently she talked of putting up their house for sale. Sadness was etched in their faces as they faced the long road cleaning up, not to mention thoughts of moving.

Another neighbor, Kevin Lacy, spoke at the shock he felt as he looked out the window and saw his vehicle start to float down the street.

John Ayres, president of the Holabird/Norwood Community Association, was on hand to offer residents affected by the flood his support. He plans release a statement via Patch about the flooding.

On a positive note, residents offered a special thanks to the English Consul Fire Company 37 from Lutherville, who worked tiresely to pump many of the flooded basements.