WASHINGTON (WUSA) — ELLICOTT CITY, Md. -- Ellicott City is no stranger to flooding.
Its location next to the Patapsco river and practically on top of the Tiber river makes it prone to flooding.
According to Preservation Maryland, Ellicott City has had 15 recorded catastrophic floods since 1768:
- 1768
- 1817
- 1837
- 1868 – Patapsco flooding, killed 43 people, destroyed 14 homes
- 1901
- 1917
- 1923
- 1942
- 1952 – September 1
- 1972 – July 12, Hurricane Agnes, 14.5 ft
- 1975 – September 30, Hurricane Eloise, Hurricane Eloise
- 1989 – September 22, flood
- 2011 – September 7, Tropical Storm Lee
- 2016 – July 30 - 2 fatalities
- 2018 – May 27 - 1 person missing
There have been attempts at flood control over the years, but none has been able to control the worst deluges that Mother Nature throws at the town.
Preservation Maryland says the 2016 and 2018 floods have been different because they descended from the top of the city and raced downward, instead of originating from the city below.
This point of difference has resulted in "more ferocious, damaging and life-threatening floods."
