Storms slap Virginia

WASHINGTON (AP) — Storms ripped through Virginia late Thursday and early Friday, damaging homes in Stafford County and threatening to flood other areas, including Central Virginia.

Most counties bordering Albemarle County, and Albemarle County itself, were under a flash flood warning Friday morning as well as a flash flood watch. More than 2.6 inches of rain fell in Crozet with more rain in some areas. The rain and flooded disrupted school bus routes and commuters and left about 500 people powerless in Albemarle County. 

Between 50 to 60 homes in the England Run North subdivision area of Stafford County were damaged when a storm rolled through about 10:30 p.m. Thursday, Stafford Fire and Rescue spokesman Lt. Mark Stone told The Free Lance-Star of Fredericksburg.

Pieces of roofs and walls were strewn about the streets. No homes were leveled, but clothes hanging in closets could be seen from the street in some of them.
Dozens of residents were taken to a temporary shelter at Gayle Middle School.

Stone told the newspaper he didn’t know if the storm would be classified as a tornado, “but clearly it was more than a thunderstorm.” The National Weather Service planned to visit the area Friday to determine if the damage was caused by heavy winds or a tornado. There also were unconfirmed reports of a tornado in the Triangle area in Prince William County.

Portions of northern and Central Virginia and southern Maryland, were under a flood warning Friday morning. The Weather Service said excessive runoff from heavy rainfall was causing elevated levels in small creeks and streams and ponding of water on roads. Friday morning, the major utilities in the Washington, D.C., region reported nearly 12,000 homes and businesses were without power. That number included about 700 in northern Virginia, 3,000 in D.C., and nearly 8,000 in central Maryland.

Flooding on railroad tracks forced disruptions and delays for commuters using MARC. The Penn Line service terminated at New Carrollton, Md.