BALTIMORE (AP) — Flooding in rural western Maryland forced the evacuation of an elementary school Tuesday afternoon as water began to breach the second floor, according to local officials.
Homes and businesses in downtown Westernport were also inundated with floodwaters following hours of heavy rain.
Officials reassured the public that students and staff were safe as concerned parents and other community members posted on social media wondering how long the emergency situation would last at Westernport Elementary School.
Allegany County spokesperson Kati Kenney said responders used rescue boats to safely evacuate the school. About 150 students and 50 adults were evacuated during 15 boat trips.
Kenney said additional evacuations were underway in nearby areas, with reports of people trapped in cars and houses, but no injuries had been reported as of late Tuesday afternoon. She said emergency crews from surrounding counties were helping with the response.
Another elementary school was also evacuated, and students at a middle school were sheltering in place, the Allegany County Department of Emergency Services said Tuesday evening. Officials said three emergency shelters had been opened across the county.
Aaron Stallings, 23, rushed to Westernport Elementary to pick up his little sister earlier Tuesday afternoon, but he soon realized his car wouldn’t make it. Stallings said he hopped a fence and made his way on foot through the shin-deep water.
“I knew my car was not going to get through, so I had to find an alternate route,” he said.
Stallings said children were being kept on the second and third floors when he made his way inside. Minutes after he located his sister with the help of the principal, the water level on the first floor had already risen again to his knees and was rushing under the school doors.
Once he waded back outside with his sister, Stallings turned around to capture video of the scene, where parked cars and a dumpster were floating through the school’s parking lot.
Alley Wade also left work early when she heard about flooding downtown. She and her husband hoped to pick up their two sons, ages 8 and 10, but they couldn’t get to the school because roads were already closed. Instead, they spent most of the afternoon standing around in the rain anxiously watching the floodwaters rise.
“It was stressful because I felt so helpless,” Wade said.
The family was finally reunited after the students had been evacuated. Wade said there were a lot of crying kids but thankfully everyone was safe.
Roads throughout the area were closed due to flooding, including major arteries, according to the Allegany County Sheriff’s Office.
Westernport Mayor Judy Hamilton said the town has been prone to severe flooding in the past, but they weren’t expecting it today.
“It just seemed to happen all at once,” she said. “My heart is breaking.”
She said the evacuated students were taken to higher ground and sheltered in a church building, where they would be kept safe by teachers and staff until their parents could pick them up.
With a population under 2,000 people, Westernport is located in the far corner of western Maryland along the West Virginia border. Its downtown took shape in a valley where George’s Creek flows into the North Branch Potomac River.
The National Weather Service reported widespread flash flooding in the area Tuesday afternoon.
Hamilton said she’s trying to get in touch with Maryland’s governor to request emergency assistance. She said the last time the town suffered from devastating floods was in 1996.
“But we’re strong and we always build back,” she said.
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Associated Press newsgathering producer Beatrice Dupuy in New York contributed to this story.
