Committee member: Allegany County issued countywide state of emergency after northern storm damage

A committee member reported to the Allegany County Resource Management Committee that the county issued a countywide state of emergency at about 9:30 p.m. the previous night after three or four towns declared local states of emergency.

The committee member said the declaration was issued following consultation with the sheriff’s office, the Office of Emergency Management and the Department of Public Works, and that the county attorney recommended leaving the declaration in place "in the event that more weather comes through in the near future." The member added, "we issued that state of emergency at 9:30 last night."

Officials emphasized that the declaration carries no emergency orders: there are no travel bans and no curfews attached. The speaker said the sheriff’s office issued a travel advisory that was widely distributed and that damage assessment teams are currently evaluating possible structural harm to bridges and culverts.

The committee member stated the county has "definitely" reached the threshold countywide for a FEMA declaration and asked towns to document all damage and forward that information to the Office of Emergency Management. "It's not doing any harm as a declaration sitting there," the member said when explaining why the declaration would remain in effect.

The member said county staff are still assessing damage and that "Tom will have more information later in the day" about specific impacts. No formal vote to adopt or rescind the declaration is recorded in the meeting transcript provided.

The committee had approved routine agenda items and minutes earlier in the meeting and then moved on to the emergency update before seeking adjournment.