25 May 2024- The National Weather Service in Sterling Virginia has issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Northeastern Washington County and Northeastern Berkeley County in the Panhandle of West Virginia Until 715 PM EDT a severe thunderstorm was located 7 miles west of Wilson-Conococheague IMPACT…Damaging winds will cause some trees and large branches to fall Roadways may become blocked by downed trees Unsecured light objects may become projectiles Locations impacted include… Hagerstown The Tri-State Alert is a News Talk 103.7 FM publication.  Any views or opinions expressed in this publication are of the host author or group and not the publication, owner(s) AI technology assists in content creation on this site; verify independently for accuracy Privacy Policy UPDATE: The National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for Washington County and parts of nearby West Virginia as well as a flash-flood warning for several Pennsylvania counties at an expected rate of 0.75 to 1.25 inches an hour That could add another 1 to 3 inches in areas that have already seen that much rain Heavy rain can produce life-threatening flash flooding of creeks, streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses, the warning states Turn around instead of trying to drive through flooded roads "Most flood deaths occur in vehicles," the warning states Some Maryland residents in Washington County also got emergency alerts on their cellphones for this warning any Marylanders whose cellphones were pinging off cell towers in nearby Pennsylvania could have gotten the phone alert meteorologist with the weather service's office in Sterling The weather service has since issued a flood warning for Washington County and Berkeley and Jefferson counties in West Virginia Some Washington County places that could experience flooding include Hagerstown; Boonsboro; Smithsburg; the Robinwood and Fountainhead-Orchard Hills areas areas that could flood include Martinsburg Tropical Depression Ida's remnants are expected to cause prolonged rain in the Tri-State area through Wednesday causing concerns about hydroplaning and flooding along waterways Washington County officials continued Wednesday morning to "strongly recommend" that people living along rivers and creeks decide early whether they are leaving the area for the storm so they don't become trapped and require the use of "overtaxed rescue resources," according to a news release issued Wednesday morning county Emergency Manager Tom Brown said residents deciding to leave the area for the storm and flooding should do so Wednesday morning at the latest Cancellations: See what's closed due to Ida There are numerous flash-flood watches and flood watches for the region with a more serious river warning issued for the Conococheague Creek at Fairview in Washington County according to the National Weather Service's website That river warning is effective from 9 p.m Larry Hogan announced Wednesday morning he directed the Maryland Emergency Management Agency to raise its state activation level for Ida That allows MEMA to coordinate a multi-agency response to address aid requests from local jurisdictions according to a news release from the governor's office Residents are urged never to drive on flooded roads They also are advised to heed all warnings keep devices charged in case of power outages and let family and friends know their travel route and expected arrival time if they do hit the road School closingsWashington County Public Schools is canceling after-school and evening activities for Wednesday according to a text from system spokeswoman Erin Anderson Several local Pennsylvania school districts have already announced closures Wednesday or other schedule changes Berkeley County Schools announced a two-hour early dismissal Wednesday All after-school and evening activities are canceled Jefferson County Schools and Morgan County Schools also are closing schools two hours early on Wednesday Morgan County is canceling after-school and evening activities Wednesday The city of Hagerstown has already closed the first block of West Memorial Boulevard as a preventative measure because the road below the railroad overpass is known to flood, according to the Hagerstown Fire Department's Facebook page That area is between South Potomac Street and Maryland Avenue.  The gates to the underpass have been closed and additional barricades placed because there are people who still try to drive around those gates, the post states There's going to be water on the roads all day watch out for hydroplaning," said Bill Gartner meteorologist with the weather service's State College The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announced that 655 is closed from the intersection of Mill Road in Licking Creek Township to the intersection of Cherry Lane in Dublin Township the storm was tracking a little faster so it is now expected to leave the Tri-State region a couple hours earlier a meteorologist with the weather service's Sterling But there is still expected to be prolonged river flooding into Thursday and Friday before waters could start to recede The latest rain forecasts call for 3 to 5 inches expected in Washington County and West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle with up to 8 inches in some localized areas according to the flash-flood watch from the weather service Heavy rain also is forecast over much of Pennsylvania The heaviest rainfall expected is 4 to 8 inches in southern parts of the Pennsylvania forecast area that includes Franklin and Fulton counties according to the flash-flood watch statement There is a possibility of scattered damaging wind gusts and a few tornadoes with thunderstorms Wednesday afternoon and evening in the local Maryland and West Virginia areas according to the weather service's website Southern Franklin County is still at slight risk for such severe weather The weather service encourages residents to keep up with weather forecasts Washington County also has information online about flood preparedness at https://www.washco-md.net/emergency-management/emerg-prep/flooding More: Washington County officials: Decide soon if leaving forecasted flood areas More: Hurricane Ida brought death, destruction, power outages and floods to Louisiana More: Hurricane Ida damage on Grand Isle Washington County officials issued a weather alert early Wednesday regarding major waterways expected to flood this week The National Weather Service has a river warning for the Conococheague Creek at Fairview and flood watches for several areas along the Potomac River and for Antietam Creek near Sharpsburg According to information the county disseminated: America's towns and cities all have their own unique personalities The INSIDER Data team used statistics from the US Census Bureau to determine the most lengthy location names in the US From a town in Maine called Mooselookmeguntic to a Virginia community named King and Queen Court House Keep reading to discover 20 of the longest location names in America Bonadelle Ranchos-Madera Ranchos has 30 letters making it the longest name of places with spaces and hyphens This California census-designated place also has 30 letters. The area is known for its geothermal mineral hot springs Encantada-Ranchito-El Calaboz has the longest name of census-designated places in Texas The area is close to beaches on the Gulf of Mexico a freshwater lake between Michigan and Canada Clarkston Heights-Vineland is a census-designated place in Washington that sits on the Snake River and the state's border with Idaho Fountainhead-Orchard Hills, a census-designated place in Maryland, is close to some of the state's most beautiful nature spots, such as South Mountain State Park Los Ranchos de Albuquerque is a village outside the city of Albuquerque Helena Valley West Central is a census-designated place in Montana outside of the state capital, Helena, which was a gold rush destination in the 19th century Fontana-on-Geneva Lake is a village in Wisconsin that has beautiful waterfront views of Geneva Lake according to the Virginia newspaper Tidewater Review With 20 letters and three separate words, it's hard to believe Washington Court House is just the namesake of one place The city is outside Cincinnati in southern Ohio which has been an iconic destination since 1778 The city was formed in 1986, when the cities of Graymoor and Devondale were combined, according to the Graymoor-Devondale website Louisville is the closest metropolitan area to Graymoor-Devondale Chattahoochee Hills is a rural city outside of Atlanta Helena-West Helena is a city close to Arkansas' border with Mississippi. According to the Phillips County website, Helena-West Helena is the largest city in the county The nearby town of Helena has historical roots that date back to the Civil War Mooselookmeguntic has 17 letters and five syllables making it the longest town or city name (without hyphens or spaces) in the US Kleinfeltersville is tied with Mooselookmeguntic unhyphenated census-designated place name in the US