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New Plan For Hurricane Evacuations In Maryland

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — With the most active hurricane season in more than a decade,  the U-S Army Corps of Engineers is making a plan to help officials in Maryland know when and were to order evacuations ahead of tropical storms.

According to our media partners at the Baltimore Sun, officials will work with local officials to map out evacuation zones and then analyze transportation systems to determine how long it would take for residents to clear out.

While the evaluation is a regular exercise, it's now factoring data from Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma, and Hurricane Maria.

Officials say the plan will replace similar documents prepared for the Eastern Shore in 2009 and counties along the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in 2010. The plan is now focused on storm surge, the violent coastal flooding that tropical winds push onto shore. Meteorologists say surge is the greatest threat to life during a hurricane.

In Baltimore, the highest storm risks appear around the Inner Harbor, Fells Point, and the Fairfield industrial area.

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