Flood Waters Trap Cars in Montgomery County, Cause Rockville Hotel To Evacuate
Rain is expected to continue in the afternoon
Flood waters from Rock Creek Monday morning covered much of Meadowbrook Local Park and closed Beach Drive during rush hour.
Steve Hull
Rising flood waters from Sunday night’s heavy rain were the cause of several emergency incidents in Montgomery County on Monday morning, including a Rockville hotel that had to be evacuated and several cars that were trapped by water.
Dozens of people had to leave the Radisson Hotel on Research Court at 3:45 a.m. after concerns about flood waters. Battalion Chief Kelvin Thomas, a spokesman for Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service, said firefighters initially responded for a fire alarm, but soon discovered flooding in the loading dock area of the hotel. They then made the call to evacuate.
Ride On buses assisted by providing temporary shelter to hotel guests, he said. A staff member at the hotel said the Radisson remained closed at 10:45 a.m., but management plans to reopen sometime in the afternoon. Many of the guests are being accommodated at the Sleep Inn across the street while others have been taken to other nearby hotels.
The flooding at the hotel appears to have been a result of an overloaded storm drain, according to MCFRS officials.
Thomas said MCFRS has received about five reports of vehicles stuck in water Monday morning.
At about 5:30 a.m., first responders helped bring a man to safety after his vehicle was partially submerged on Beach Drive in Bethesda. There was another report of a trapped vehicle on Beach Drive later in the morning, but rescuers did not find anyone there, Thomas said.
MCFRS crews also rescued a driver from a car on Brighton Dam Road in the Clarksville area.
High water also blocked two left lanes of the inner loop of the Beltway at Seven Locks Road early Monday morning, though the highway lanes were reopened by 7:30 a.m.
The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning effective in the county until 10:30 this morning. Rains are expected to continue into the afternoon and evening.
“Don’t drive through flooded waters or flooded streets,” Thomas said. “Just use extreme caution out there.”
Update - water rescue - @MCFRS on scene for water rescue at Beach Dr/E Stanhope Rd (Kensington Area) - multiple vehicles in the water. Expect delays & some road closures in area. @mcfrs have rescued/assisted at least 1 person from stranded vehicle @MCFRSNews pic.twitter.com/ij0nEje0rc
— Pete Piringer (@mcfrsPIO) April 16, 2018
MCFRS assisted one driver off roof of car in flooded 1700 blk of Brighton Dam Rd. Driver happy to be on dry land with NLT injuries. @mcfrsPIO pic.twitter.com/lzbkPr6GgN
— Pazos@mcfrsPIO (@DavidPazos15) April 16, 2018
Driver was rescued from this car on Beach Dr, just off Connecticut Ave in Kensington. @WTOPtraffic pic.twitter.com/d09TZ7PSVA
— Neal Augenstein (@AugensteinWTOP) April 16, 2018
Couple from #LongIsland describe being evacuated from #Radisson in Rockville due to flooding, 2 feet water in electrical room #Working4You @nbcwashington pic.twitter.com/rFm3JS8ZX5
— Chris Lawrence (@clawrencenbc) April 16, 2018
This story was corrected to reflect that Brighton Dam Road is in Clarksville, not Clarksburg.
