Region Dries Out, Cleans Up After Record-Setting Rain

Despite Hanna's floodwaters and record rainfall, a few fire hoses, wood chippers and bulldozers yesterday erased most remnants of Washington's first tropical storm this year.

But in Montgomery County, runoff washed away a big chunk of the C&O Canal towpath, a major scenic and recreational amenity.

In a Fairfax County community evacuated from flooding Saturday, firefighters blasted away mud caked on sidewalks and streets after the soupy water receded. Road crews ground up felled trees and pushed away debris to reopen Route 1 and other thoroughfares.

Utility workers labored to restore power to thousands who had lost it; last night, utility companies said the number of households without electricity was down to about 150.

Restoring power and hosing streets became some of the biggest tasks yesterday after sweeps of the areas hit by Tropical Storm Hanna's heaviest rains showed little structural damage.

In the Huntington neighborhood of Fairfax, where about 50 people were evacuated, county officials said a search of 114 homes found that four had water damage, all contained to basements.

However, damage was reported to sheds that held mementos, electronics, papers, luggage and other meaningful items.

Guy Johnson, 38, a body shop manager whose house is on Arlington Terrace in Huntington, said that when the Cameron Run creek overflowed, he lost $500 in hunting gear he kept in a shed. He and his wife, Megan, who have five children, got a cleanup kit, with brooms, mops and disinfectant spray, from a Red Cross crew in the neighborhood.

Like several others in the neighborhood, Johnson was angry that Fairfax officials had not done more to protect residents after a much bigger flood in 2006. During Saturday's storm, Johnson said he complained to Board of Supervisors Chairman Gerald E. Connolly (D), who had come to inspect the neighborhood.

"I told him we're in the richest county in the country and they need to fix the damn water problems," Johnson said.

Another man, who lives on Fenwick Street, was hosing mud off his driveway. Amid the damaged materials pulled from two sheds were his wedding photos.

"I just moved in a month ago, and no one told me this was a flood zone," said the man, who declined to give his name. The water had left grass and mud midway up his fence.

In Prince William County, where Neabsco Creek swallowed Route 1 and officials had warned that the road might stay closed for days, crews cleared and reopened it.

Fairfax officials also quickly ruled that erosion at Royal Lake Dam was no danger to the water system, but said they would continue monitoring and make a new assessment later this week.

"I think this was good practice," Fairfax spokeswoman Merni Fitzgerald said of the storm. "It's still hurricane season until November."

The storm set rainfall records for Sept. 6 at Dulles International and Reagan National airports: 5.11 inches and 3.5 inches respectively, according to the National Weather Service, beating previous records of 3.62 inches and 1.55 inches set in 1996.

Storm runoff washed away a section of the C&O towpath perhaps 100 feet long and 60 feet deep just above the Old Angler's Inn, said Matthew Logan, president of the C&O Canal Trust.

He said runoff into the canal apparently opened a small breach, which expanded for hours.

Hanna was blamed for the death of a man who lost control of a truck on Interstate 95 near the Powder Mill Road exit.

In all, fewer than 20 roads remained closed in Fairfax and Prince William yesterday, officials said. Only a handful were blocked by water; the others were closed because of electric line repairs or downed trees.

Officials in Maryland, Virginia and the District said they expected few, if any, problems today for morning commuters, and District officials said all schools will open, although nine had minor flooding.

Staff writer Martin Weil contributed to this report.