ELLICOTT CITY, Md. (AP) - After deadly floods in central Maryland, Howard County Executive Allan Kittleman says he's tapped the county's planning department to draft a master plan to address flood-prone areas in order to prevent future disasters.
He said he believes nothing "could have stopped this tragedy," but that "it is an opportunity to make some changes."
Kittleman hosted a meeting Monday for residents impacted by severe flooding in Ellicott City.
So many people crowded into the community center Monday that attendees spilled into each of the rooms in the building to watch feeds of the meeting livestream on social media.
Kittleman said despite extensive storm and flood damage, "make no mistake: we will rebuild."
Brother
The brother of a woman who died in a flash flood says his wife and two other relatives were with her at the time but survived the ordeal.
Curtis Brubaker of Dover, Pennsylvania, said Monday that his sister Jessica Watsula left her 10-year-old daughter Sarah with him Saturday while she went to dinner with Brubaker's wife, his mother-in-law and his sister-in-law.
Brubaker says his wife Christina told him the women left the restaurant during a downpour, and got into Watsula's compact car.
He says the car was hit by a wave that pushed it down the road, and the women climbed out but soon lost track of each other.
He says his wife remembers Watsula saying, "God, help us! God, help us!" before she disappeared.
