Maryland, 2000

Flash Flood and Lightning Strike in Maryland, September 2, 2000

September 2, 2000 · NWS LWX · 6 events in 5 counties and zones

Slow moving thunderstorms produced heavy rainfall and damaging lightning across portions of central Maryland during the afternoon of the 2nd. In Calvert County, law enforcement officials reported cars floating off Mt.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 6 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
6

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS LWX wrote it up.

Slow moving thunderstorms produced heavy rainfall and damaging lightning across portions of central Maryland during the afternoon of the 2nd. In Calvert County, law enforcement officials reported cars floating off Mt. Harmony Road after water rapidly rose. Route 4 and 260 in addition to roads in Dunkirk, Owings Mills, and North Beach were also inundated by water. A total of 1.25 inches of rain was reported in Dunkirk where lightning strikes damaged two homes and a fire station. In Anne Arundel County, a total of 3.75 inches fell at Jug Bay Wetlands near the Calvert County border and 1.84 inches fell at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. In Howard County, 1.99 inches was reported in Laurel. In Prince George's County, 2.89 inches was recorded just northeast of Rosaryville in Patuxent River Park and 2.00 inches fell in College Park.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

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Event by event

4 heavy rain, 1 flash flood, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Rain, Howard

When
September 2, 2:00 PM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Howard County, Countywide
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
39.251, -76.931 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Anne Arundel

When
September 2, 2:00 PM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Anne Arundel County, Countywide
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.994, -76.568 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, Prince George'S

When
September 2, 2:00 PM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Prince George'S County, Countywide
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.830, -76.847 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Rain, St. Mary'S

When
September 2, 2:00 PM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
St. Mary'S County, Countywide
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
38.216, -76.529 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Calvert

When
September 2, 2:30 PM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Calvert County, North Portion
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
38.535, -76.531 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Several roads in the northern portion of the county were flooded.

Lightning, Calvert

When
September 2, 4:00 PM EST to 5:00 PM EST
Where
Calvert County, Dunkirk
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
38.535, -76.531 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning damaged two homes and a fire station.

What these are

Heavy Rain
Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
Lightning
A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Maryland in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in Maryland, September 2000

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5156309, 5156310, 5156311, 5156312, 5156313, 5156314.