Friday, May 17, 2024 | Baltimore, MD
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Around Maryland

Marylanders report feeling earthquake centered in New Jersey

Some Marylanders reported feeling an earthquake Friday morning that was centered in New Jersey. The U.S. Geological Survey reported a 4.8 magnitude earthquake was recorded around 10:23 a.m. near Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, about 45 miles west of New York City and 50 miles north of Philadelphia. The quake even paused business at the United Nations in New York City.

Read More: WBALTV
Taken in Kentucky during the 2017 August Total Eclipse.
Will Maryland see the 2024 solar eclipse? Here’s how, when and where to safely see it

Marylanders may be able to catch a partial glimpse of the total solar eclipse set to cross North America on April 8. The moon will completely block the face of the sun, darkening the sky for those in the “path of totality,” which includes some 31 million Americans across 15 states. “It will look like the sun is being cut into a crescent shape like a cookie with a bite taken out of it,” said Allison Youngblood, a research astrophysicist at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and a deputy project scientist for the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS).

 

Read More: WBALTV
They’re sustaining Baltimore’s bridge recovery, one sandwich at a time

BALTIMORE — If you’re a regular at Kitsch, Jackie Mearman probably knows your name. She’ll greet Johns Hopkins University students crossing the street for a pick-me-up at the cafe and neighbors dropping in for a pastry. And on Monday, as a woman loudly chatted up another customer by the front door, Mearman whispered to a reporter, “I know she’s going to talk forever.”

Family-owned W.F. Delauter & Son closing after almost 70 years

W.F. Delauter & Son, a construction company in Emmitsburg, is closing after nearly 70 years, owner and operator Kirby Delauter said Thursday. “You get to a point in life where you want to slow down,” Delauter, a former Frederick County commissioner and councilman, said in an interview on Thursday. He said he’s retiring. More than 80 employees were laid off, Delauter said, but some have received offers to work elsewhere. “They’re all great people,” he said.

11 ships are trapped behind the Key Bridge, including four considered critical to the nation’s defense

There are 11 cargo ships trapped in the Port of Baltimore behind the wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge — including four that are supposed to be able to set sail at a moment’s notice to support the overseas deployment of U.S. military forces. The four ships, the SS Antares, SS Denebola, Gary I. Gordon and Cape Washington, are part of the U.S. Maritime Administration’s Ready Reserve Force, a fleet established in 1976 to quickly supply American troops around the world. Two of them — the Antares and the Denebola — are capable of sailing from the East Coast to Europe in six days, making them among the fastest cargo ships in the world, according to a 2020 Facebook post by the Maritime Administration.

Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Annapolis, MD
Is the Bay Bridge safe? Key Bridge collapse has engineers taking a closer look

Even before the tragic collapse of the Key Bridge last week, the outstretched, cramped traveling lanes of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge had been known to make nervous drivers grip their steering wheels a little tighter. The dual-spanned, 4-mile-long bridge, which opened in 1952, is among the world’s longest over-water structures. Like the Key Bridge, it is among the 3% of bridges in the country to fall under the “fracture critical” category, meaning the entire structure could collapse if certain supports give way.

Howard County expanding homebuyer down payment assistance, rehab loan programs

Howard County government officials are directing more money toward homeownership and renovation programs designed to provide relief to buyers and residents in a challenging real estate economy. County Executive Calvin Ball unveiled changes to two existing county initiatives Wednesday, one that provides low-interest down payment assistance to eligible buyers and another that offers rehabilitation loans for homeowners seeking to make repairs.

Maryland Department of Agriculture Encouraging Residents to Help Control Mosquito Populations

The Maryland Department of Agriculture’s Mosquito Control Program is urging residents to act now to reduce mosquito populations by reducing standing water on their properties. Officials say mosquitoes can carry a number of diseases that are harmful to humans and animals, including West Nile Virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis. “Now is the time to be proactive about protecting yourself and your family from mosquito-borne diseases by eliminating places they may breed,” said Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks.

 

Read More: WBOC
‘More work to do’ to combat crime in downtown Silver Spring, Montgomery Co. officials say

Officials in Montgomery County, Maryland, held a news conference Wednesday on their efforts to cut crime in downtown Silver Spring, emphasizing that progress is being made despite challenges that include police department staffing levels. Noting that crime for the first quarter of the current year seems to be trending downward, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich said the county has seen just one homicide so far this year in comparison to an average of “seven per quarter over the last three years.”

Read More: WTOP

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