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Apr 21, 2008 8:00 pm US/Eastern
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Md. Picks Up The Pieces After Sunday's Storms
BALTIMORE (WJZ/AP) ―
Maryland is drying out and cleaning up after a set of storms.
Flood waters were higher than drivers thought they'd be, and the National Weather Service confirmed that the damaging storms that tore through portions of Prince George's and Charles counties on Sunday were small tornadoes.
Adam May reports both struck between 2 and 3 p.m.
The Weather Service says the first apparently touched down just south of Waldorf, then headed north -- damaging roofs and bringing down tree branches.
The Prince George's County Fire Department says one of its firefighters working in Chillum saw what may have been the second tornado. The twister tore off the roof of the auditorium at the George E. Peters Seventh Day Adventist school in Hyattsville.
Sheets of rain have further damaged the inside of the building after the roof was blown off.
"I came over just to see the destruction. It's really, really sad," said parent Barbra Busse.
Restoration crews worked throughout Monday afternoon to stop further water damage to the K-8 private school. It's now closed indefinitely.
One of the school's teachers was inside the building when it happened. She saw the Wizard Of Oz-like scene.
"Actually the wind lifted the roof up off the building, and I actually saw it come over and land in the middle of the parking lot," said Karen McKinney.
The twister also triggered a gas leak at the school, but it was shut off immediately because firefighters were stationed across the street.
Trailers in the parking lot were blown over by the winds, and a nearby church also was damaged by debris from the school.
Damages at the school are expected to exceed a couple of million dollars, possibly as high as $5 million.
The National Weather Service is also investigating a report of a tornado in northern Baltimore County.
"We were watching a radar, and we saw a circulation, a spin in one of the storms we were watching very closely. But from this point there hasn't been any tornado damage that we've heard of. We're still investigating in case something comes up," said Chris Strong with the National Weather Service. "People in Maryland really need to monitor the weather at least once a day."
In Sunday's storms, some areas got away untouched, and others were pounded hard by heavy rain and strong wind gusts.
Derek Valcourt reports in Carroll County, the metal roof on a barn was ripped right off. The Cornias family found chunks of it far away in their cattle fields.
"It was incredibly strong because it didn't take a long time. It was a matter of a few minutes that this damage was caused," said Harry Cornias, who owns the farm.
Harry Cornias was home when the storm struck and more than 20 trees on their property snapped like twigs. Power lines were also taken out.
"It was raining all day and then the winds just picked up and you heard that whistle," he said.
While they were hit hard, they were not alone. Around the region, storms wreaked havoc.
In the Union Mills area of Baltimore County, neighbors said they heard the storm coming.
"In three or four seconds, it was done with as far as the roar, and I knew what had passed over. When I came outside, the destruction was there," said Donald Lipscomb.
In Reisterstown, lightning struck the steeple of a church, starting a small fire. Fire officials say it will take several weeks before the damages are fully repaired
In the city, the intense rains washed out some roads, and left drivers to soak in Mother Nature's wrath.
Lightning became an issue in the storm. An emergency crew was on standby at BWI Airport, where lightning struck a plane. Fortunately, it landed safely and no one was injured.
Emergency communications officials in Frederick County are reporting numerous road closings due to local flooding, mostly in the northern portion of the county.
County emergency services supervisor Mickey Fyock reports there were several water rescues in the same area Sunday night. He says the Emmittsburg fire company rescued several people stranded on top of their cars on Keysville Road.
No one was injured.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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