What a week in Alexandria.
Public uproar over Sunday’s flooding spilled out throughout this week, which continued to be threatened by near-daily flash flood advisories from the National Weather Service.
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Today on WAMU’s The Politics Hour, Mayor Justin Wilson laid out plans for flood infrastructure work, predicted a decision this fall over whether recreation centers will require proof of vaccination, and tacitly endorsed the Arlington-Georgetown gondola.
The discussion of the mayor took up the back half of the hour-long program hosted by Kojo Nnamdi and Tom Sherwood. As fitting the program’s name, the show started with a question of politics and whether Mayor Justin Wilson is planning to debate Republican candidate Annetta Catchings.
In what’s turning out to be the wettest week of the year, Alexandria is once again under a Flash Flood Warning. The warning is in effect until 12:15 p.m.
NWS warns that thunderstorms may produce life-threatening flash flooding.
Get ready for more serious weather, as the National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Watch in Alexandria. The advisory is in effect until 2 p.m. Friday.
Humid conditions will result in showers and scattered thunderstorms in the evening hours, the National Weather Service tweeted.
In what’s become at least an annual occurrence in Alexandria, heavy rainfall led to severe flooding for many Alexandrians, particularly in Del Ray neighborhood.
City leadership has promised to accelerate the timetable for planned flooding mitigation efforts, but warned that major infrastructure projects will still take some time to process.
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Scott Shaw named Chamber’s 2021 Business Leader of the Year — “For the last six years, he has served as a partner of Alexandria Restaurant Partners (ARP). ARP operates nine restaurants including The Majestic and Theismann’s Restaurant… Outside of the restaurant industry, Shaw established Founders Hall and co-founded ALX Community. His community involvement includes serving as Chair of the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership. In this position… In 2017, Shaw founded the Tall Ship Providence Foundation, which is dedicated to preserving Alexandria’s rich maritime history through educational programs and entertainment.” [Zebra]
Rep. Beyer says he’s working on securing stormwater management funding for Alexandria — “I’m also working to secure more federal funding for storm and sewer projects in ALX in upcoming infrastructure legislation.” [Twitter]
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Danielle Reynolds has actually gotten therapy because of the summer flooding of her Del Ray basement. The family is stuck in a quandary, as moving away isn’t affordable, but neither is spending tens of thousands to continually redo their basement.
“I’ve sought therapy to deal with this, because you can’t move away,” Reynolds told ALXnow. “You can’t afford to buy another house in the area, you love where you live, your kids are friends with all the kids in the neighborhood. You just feel really stuck, and unfortunately there’s not a whole lot that I can do.”
With topical storms headed toward Alexandria, the National Weather Service has issued a Tornado Watch and a Flash Flood Watch that will be in effect until tonight.
The Tornado Watch is currently in effect until 8 p.m. The Flash Flood Watch comes after Sunday morning’s flooding that swept through familiar areas that have experienced significant stormwater issues for years. It is in effect until 10 p.m.
For Katie Waynick, like many Del Ray residents, it’s been a pretty depressing week.
Waynick runs DrainALX, a social media campaign with a Twitter following that surged to over 600 followers this weekend, and was bombarded this weekend with pictures and videos from friends and neighbors with homes flooded and pipes overflowing.
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Alexandria Sheriff Dana Lawhorne is fed up and says the city’s stormwater management is a disaster. On Sunday, Lawhorne said he was helping a neighbor in Del Ray pump water out of his basement until 4 a.m.
“It’s the same summer repeated over and over again,” Lawhorne told ALXnow. “I’ve got basement damage and my shed in the back is destroyed. Whenever we get a big storm you’ll see two-to-three feet of water rushing into the back alley and our house gets engulfed with floodwater. It’s not sanitary.”
A Flash Flood Warning is in effect until 8:15 p.m. in Alexandria, just days after massive flooding throughout the city. A Flash Flood Watch was issued earlier today and was previously in effect until 3 p.m.
The National Weather Service warned of “Life threatening flash flooding of creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses.”