7 days ago
Howard County flood protection progress celebrated after another round of heavy rain
Some flooding may have crept close to streets in Historic Ellicott City over the last few days, but it was nothing compared to the devastation Main Street has had in the past.
Howard County's Ellicott City Safe and Sound Plan has been in the works since 2018, and it's credited with helping keep flooding away.
A business owner along Main Street agrees there are positive impacts that show how valuable the plan has been.
When it rains like it did Monday and Sunday, a wave of fear comes over business owner Cindi Ryland.
"What we go through here every time it rains, we all just hold our breath," Ryland said. "It's frightening, but we're here and we're resilient."
Ryland has been a business owner on Main Street for decades -- as owner of vintage and antique store Retropolitan, and selling out of the Stone House Collective -- so she's lived through the catastrophic floods of 2011, 2016, and 2018.
Altogether, according to Howard County Executive Calvin Ball's office, around 1.5 inches of rain fell in less than an hour on Monday. On Sunday, nearly 3.5 inches of rain fell in three hours.
That's close to the amount of rainfall from the last catastrophic event in 2018.
The EC Safe and Sound Plan includes a series of projects meant to redirect and keep water away from Historic Ellicott City.
The projects include five retention ponds, two of which are complete, and two water conveyance projects. Those include a series of culverts under Maryland Avenue and the North Tunnel project.
The third retention pond is expected to be up and running this fall. The North Tunnel is expected to be complete by fall 2027, while the culverts are in their final design stage.
There are also a number of measures that have been put in place to complement those projects, and some are done ahead of big rain events.
Crews from the Department of Public Works inspect streams and clear debris in the watershed to ensure water can keep flowing. There's also now some signage posted around Historic Ellicott City to show where to get to high ground.
A tone alert system has also been installed and used several times to alert of potential flooding.
Howard County Police have been helping as well.
During Monday's rain event, officers enacted parking restrictions to keep drivers away from any floodwater. Police also towed 13 cars from closed-off streets and parking lots to higher ground at no cost to the drivers.
Ball said he's proud of the progress made.
"No longer is Ellicott City going to be known as the place that flooded," Ball said. "It's the place that came back. It's the place that's resilient. It's the place where the community comes together."
Ball knows more needs to be done, especially to finish all of the projects under the plan.
However, Ryland said she's happy to have seen some positive impact already.
"It has just been so close every time," Ryland said. "We've survived every time without any flooding on Main Street."
