Tropical Depression Debby made its way through Annapolis Friday, bringing record flooding to the City Dock area, an unconfirmed report from the Annapolis Office of Emergency Management says. The city reported that the water was about 4.2 feet above normal levels during high tide Friday morning, said Nicole Torres, spokesperson for OEM.
City Dock and Compromise Street were closed down because of a significant amount of standing water in the area. Floodwaters stopped just short of where the Market House sits on Main Street. “This is the first time we’ve had two top ten [flooding] events in the same year,” Torres said Friday morning.
Flooding from January’s storm surpassed those of October 2021, making this the third biggest flooding event in the city’s history . In October 2021, flooding reached 4.9 feet above normal water levels.
In January, the waters reached 5.1 feet above normal levels. Friday’s floodwater is suspected to be ranked as the ninth-biggest flooding event in the city’s history.
A confirmation will be released when the storm passes, according to Torres. Preliminary estimates show that hide tide is expected to be “not nearly as bad as this morning,” Torres said Friday afternoon. Forecasters are estimating that the evening high tide will be about 3.
2 feet above normal water levels. High tide is expected to arrive around 10 p.m.
Randall Street, which closed down Friday morning, has reopened while City Dock and Compromise Street remain closed. There is no estimate when both roads will open again, according to Torres. Residents and business owners in the city impacted by the storm can report damages to this link .
In May, OEM provided a preliminary analysis of flooding events that have occurred so far this year. Looking at data though the end of April, the city is on track to having 120 flooding events this year, indicating that if their frequency continues, said Kevin Simmons, director of OEM in May. In 2019, there were 65 minor flooding events, the most the city has experienced.
Mayor Gavin Buckley spoke to FOX45 News around 7 a.m. Friday, saying “please don’t come downtown;” however, that did not stop visitors and locals from spending the day downtown to catch a glimpse of what remains from high tide.
Dan Gallagher, who lives on Dock Street where the flooding sits, bikes up and down Dock Street every morning. Friday morning was no different, except for having to move his routine uptown near Market House. “The flooding is a part of life down here, and I hope that everything gets cleaned up as well as it can,” he said.
Stacey Cover and Annett Stevens docked into City Dock around noon yesterday with their husbands for Cover’s birthday weekend. Traveling from Middle River, they decided to go forward with their plans to stay in Annapolis for the weekend because, with the exception of Friday, the weekend was looking “beautiful.” Thomas Micciche, general manager at Dock Street Bar, puts out a slippery when wet sign.
The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W. Gillespie/Staff photo) Flooding on Main Street.
The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W. Gillespie/Staff photo) Dan Gallagher rides his bike in the waters around City Dock.
The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W. Gillespie/Staff photo) Flooded Compromise Street.
The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W. Gillespie/Staff photo) The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland.
(Paul W. Gillespie/Staff photo) Onlookers take photos and look at the flooding in front of the Market House. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland.
(Paul W. Gillespie/Staff photo) Ducks paddle in the streets around City Dock. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland.
(Paul W. Gillespie/Staff photo) The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W.
Gillespie/Staff photo) Clifford Dean eats his Rise Up breakfast and tea watching the flooding at City Dock. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W.
Gillespie/Staff photo) Flooding on Compromise Street. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W.
Gillespie/Staff photo) Brian Broderick wades through the flood waters. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W.
Gillespie/Staff photo) Flooding on Compromise Street. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W.
Gillespie/Staff photo) Flooding around Market House and Memorial Circle. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W.
Gillespie/Staff photo) Thomas Micciche, general manager at Dock Street Bar, puts out a slippery when wet sign. The Annapolis City Dock area deals with flooding as the remnants of tropical storm Debby makes its way through central Maryland. (Paul W.
Gillespie/Staff photo) In a Facebook post earlier this morning, David Sites reported that the dock at the Thomas Point Lighthouse was taken in the storm. “I am very sad to report that the storm has taken out the dock at Thomas Point Lighthouse, along with Drew, our resident coyote mascot,” he wrote Friday. In January, historic high tides took half of the wooden dock .
John Potvin, manager at Thomas Point Lighthouse, did return a request for comment immediately. As of around noon Friday, 13 roads in Anne Arundel County are either fully or partially blocked due to either downed trees or flooding, according to Kasey Thomas, spokesperson for the Anne Arundel Office of Emergency Management — 12 of those 13 are county roads while one is a state road, Thomas said in email. Seven roads are fully blocked with six of those closures due to flooding.
The county has not identified the cause for one fully closed road, Thomas said in an email statement. Five that are partially blocked by downed trees or flooding. Flooding has been reported in South County coastal areas.
Flooding also has been reported where River Road and Maynadier Lane meet in Crownsville. The county has a portal for residents to report blocked roads and other storm damage, Thomas said. The link to the portal can be found here .
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