The St. Mary’s Board of County Commissioners and the Department of Public Safety are closely monitoring the track and impacts of Tropical Storm Ernesto. Currently the forecast for St Mary’s County, as provided by the National Weather Service in Sterling, VA is as follows:
This afternoon and tonight
Tropical storm Ernesto is expected to make landfall on the upper South Carolina coast this evening. The remnants of the storm will move north and reach the Mid-Atlantic Friday. Extensive tropical moisture and heavy rains will spread north ahead of the storm. The heaviest rains will reach central Virginia this evening, and into northern Maryland Friday morning. A flash flood watch has been posted for the entire area beginning this afternoon and goes through late Friday night.
Prolonged onshore winds will result in tidal departures of 1.5 to 2.5 feet above normal along the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay and on the tidal Potomac. A coastal flood watch is in effect until 6 am Saturday.
A small craft advisory is in effect for all tidal waters.
Limited quantities of sandbags are available to St. Mary’s County residents who reside in coastal areas that are subject to storm surges and flooding. The stockpiles of sandbags will be located at the Charlotte Hall, Ridge, Valley Lee, Oakville, and Clements transfer stations. Approximately 300 sandbags will be available at each location on a first-come-first-served basis. Attendants at each site will distribute 8 to 10 bags per household. The convenience centers will be open until 6:30pm on Thursday, August 31 and will reopen at 7am on Friday, September 1.
As Ernesto develops please stay tuned to your local radio and television stations, in addition to The Bay Net, for further updates and warnings from the National Weather Service and St Mary’s County Government.