Nearly 9,000 people in Fairfax County are without power after this afternoon’s storms, the most intense of which have moved on into Maryland.
As of 5:30 p.m., 8,971 Dominion Energy customers in the county had lost power, according to the real-time tracking database PowerOutage.US.
The most sizable outages have cropped up in Belle Haven along the Route 1 corridor, where 3,429 customers have lost power, and near Kingstowne along Beulah Street in Franconia, where 1,895 customers are affected, according to Dominion Energy’s outage map.
Per the map, Dominion has confirmed that the Franconia outage was caused by the storm, which produced high-speed winds that prompted a Tornado Warning from 4:18-4:33 p.m. Crews are currently working on the incident, potentially restoring power between 5 and 10 p.m.
Causes for the most significant outages in the Belle Haven area are still pending investigation, but crews are now assessing the damage, according to Dominion. The estimated time of restoration ranges from 6 p.m. to midnight.
Power outages have also been reported in West Springfield and Mantua.
While there hasn’t been any confirmation of tornadoes, wind gusts reached 58 mph at Reagan National Airport, according to the Capital Weather Gang.
A Flash Flood Warning remains in effect until 7:45 p.m. Some flooding was reported in Springfield and the Alexandria area, where 2 to 4 inches of rain had fallen as of 5 p.m., the National Weather Service said.
(Updated at 12:45 p.m. on 6/16/2023) As Pride Month got underway, a pair of hate incidents targeting the LGBTQ community shook up Falls Church and West Potomac high schools.
At Falls Church High School (7521 Jaguar Trail) in West Falls Church, a student admitted to stealing a rainbow Pride flag from the school and burning it, principal Ben Nowak said in a message to the school community on June 6.
According to Nowalk’s letter, a circulating video that the student recorded of the flag burning captured “another young person…using homophobic and hate-filled language towards the LGBTQ+ community.”
Nowalk emphasized that Fairfax County Public Schools and Falls Church High School “will not tolerate this kind of behavior” as it goes against “the kind of school community we seek to cultivate.”
“Each and every student in FCHS has the right to feel safe and affirmed in our school,” he wrote. “June is Pride Month, when we recognize the resilience and determination of the many individuals who are fighting to live freely and authentically. We stand with those facing an ongoing struggle against discrimination and injustice. This is sadly more evident today given this hateful act.”
An FCPS spokesperson indicated that the student has been disciplined, but the school system can’t share further details due to federal laws protecting the privacy of students and families.
“Please know we take such incidents of hate seriously and appropriate disciplinary actions are always taken,” FCPS spokesperson Julie Moult said.
The Fairfax County Police Department confirmed that the theft of the Pride flag, which was displayed outside a classroom trailer, was reported to its school resource officer (SRO) at the school.
“The SRO determined that a juvenile stole the flag,” the FCPD said. “The SRO discovered that the flag was reportedly burned by another juvenile. The juveniles have been referred to the juvenile justice system.”
Also last week, graffiti with messages described as antisemitic and homophobic was painted on the “spirit rock” outside West Potomac High School (6500 Quander Road) in Belle Haven, according to a message to families from principal Dr. Tanganyika Millard.
The graffiti was discovered the morning of June 7, when the community gathered at the school for the Class of 2023 graduation ceremony.
“It has always been a point of pride that we live in a diverse and caring community,” Millard wrote. “To see these symbols of hate at the space that welcomes others to our school is devastating. We will make every effort to find those responsible and hold them accountable.”
The FCPD said it doesn’t have a record of any reports of antisemitic graffiti at West Potomac High School last week.
In response to the incidents, FCPS Pride, an advocacy organization for LGBTQIA students, staff, family and allies, announced earlier this week that it will hold a Pride Rally Against Hate at Luther Jackson Middle School (3020 Gallows Road) in Merrifield today (Thursday).
The rally will take place from 5:30 to 7 p.m. before the Fairfax County School Board’s meeting, which will include a proclamation honoring Pride Month.
“Hate incidents…against all communities have been accelerating in FCPS, and we demand by our presence that the system take action,” FCPS Pride said in a media advisory.
Moult confirmed that FCPS is currently developing a system for tracking hate and bias incidents, as previously reported by WTOP.
The school system announced last month that it would hire an investigator to look into an anonymous email that complained about Oakton High School’s former Black cheerleading coaches.
(Updated at 10:15 a.m. on 9/2/2022) Fairfax County police have arrested four people after chasing a vehicle on Route 1 that was allegedly stolen.
The north left shoulder, left lane, and center lane of Route 1 (also known as Richmond Highway) were closed today (Thursday) at the Fort Hunt Road intersection in Belle Haven, just south of the Capital Beltway, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation’s traffic information site.
According to the county police department, an officer spotted a vehicle going north on Route 1 that had been reported stolen in a Prince George’s County carjacking. When the officer attempted a traffic stop near Fort Hunt Road, the “car did not stop and continued to drive away,” a spokesperson said.
The resulting pursuit ended in the Huntington Avenue area when the officer deployed a Precision Immobilization Technique, a manuever for stopping high-speed vehicles that the FCPD pioneered but has been criticized as risky.
The move prompted the car to roll over into southbound Route 1 traffic, police told FFXnow.
Four occupants of the vehicle were taken into custody and transported to a hospital with injuries not considered life-threatening, according to police. No officers were injured.
The FCPD is advising community members to avoid the area.
The department will identify those arrested — all of them adults — and announce charges tomorrow (Friday).
Officers are in area of Richmond Hwy & Huntington Rd after pursuing a stolen vehicle. Officer used Precision Immobilization Technique to stop the car. 4 occupants in custody & transported w/non-life-threatening inj. Officers are ok. Please avoid area. #FCPD pic.twitter.com/F2TMIjPe1s
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) September 1, 2022
A floodwall in the Belle Haven community could help address Northern Virginia’s flood risk.
A recent study looked at the west bank of the Potomac River from Arlington to Prince William County for solutions to improve resiliency and reduce risks to human health and safety, economic damages, and disruption of critical infrastructure, according to a presentation.
While there were multiple options, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers found a 5,600-foot-long floodwall in Belle Haven and a 2,500-foot-long floodwall along the Arlington Water Pollution Control Plant on S. Glebe Road were the most feasible.
The total cost of both would be $52.6 million, which includes a 45% contingency on costs, and is estimated to reduce about $66 million in potential damage.
The proposed Belle Haven floodwall would begin around Golf Course Square and extend down Boulevard View before turning west. Then, an earthen levee would be constructed and end near Westview Dog Park, according to the Feasibility Report and Environmental Assessment by Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
A map of Belle Haven shows that by 2030, the flood risk could extend to the Belle View Shopping Center, Belle Haven Country Club and other parts of the community.
The Belle Haven floodwall would have permanent aesthetic and recreation impacts, as well as stream impacts, according to the presentation. The floodwall would be about 6 feet tall on average.
During construction, there would also be temporary stream impacts. Mitigation would be required for permanent stream impacts.
The public can comment on the study through Thursday, June 30, by emailing the project team at DC-Metro-CSRM-Study@usace.army.mil. The Corps of Engineers will respond to comments and revise the report between July and September, determing if this is the preferred option by November.
After further study, design — which hasn’t been funded yet — wouldn’t begin on the project until at least 2024.
The study was conducted as Northern Virginia has seen damaging storms over the years, to include the Chesapeake and Potomac Hurricane of 1933, Hurricane Agnes (1972), Hurricane Fran (1996), Nor’easter (1998), Hurricane Floyd (1999), Hurricane Isabel (2003), Hurricane Irene (2011) and Hurricane Sandy (2012).
Hurricane Isabel resulted in extreme water levels and caused millions of dollars of damage to residences, businesses and critical infrastructure, according to the study.
(Updated at 7:40 p.m.) Why’d the bear cross GW Parkway?
Possibly to find an easy meal or explore its landscape after a winter hibernation, according to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.
A bear was sighted in the Belle Haven area on Thursday (June 9), and one Nextdoor user snapped some photos of it crossing George Washington Memorial Parkway near Belle View Boulevard, not too far from the Mount Vernon Trail.
The sightings piqued some social media users’ interest, with residents suggesting names for the bear and sharing photos of it around the neighborhood.
The Fairfax County Police Department says its Animal Protection Police and wildlife management specialist were alerted to bear sightings in the area over the weekend. The department has also received recent reports of a young bear moving through McLean.
Last week, a bear was also seen wandering around Arlington, though it’s unclear whether any of the bears that have been spotted are the same one.
While bear encounters aren’t common in Fairfax County, they’re not unusual during the spring and summer, when young bears old enough to be independent from their mothers spread out and seek food in green spaces that wildlife uses to travel, according to the FCPD.
Bear sightings have increased in recent years, as the animal’s population grows.
“This trend will continue in the future,” the county police told FFXnow. “Bears have adapted to living near people and we must also learn to adapt to bear activity and take responsible action to prevent conflicts from occurring in our communities by removing food sources that attract bears.”
The bear could be out looking for an easy meal as bears are emerging from their winter dens hungry, or it could be a cub exploring the landscape, according to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources, which says it’s important for homeowners to secure all potential food sources to reduce bear encounters.
In the past week, there have been several sightings of a juvenile black bear or bears in Northern Virginia, including in Arlington and Fairfax. Click below for more information.
— AWLA Alexandria (@AlexAnimals) June 10, 2022
Homeowners should secure garbage, compost, barbeque grills, birdseed and pet food.
“The goal is to make human sources of food harder for a bear to get than what nature provides — especially food that is high in fat and calories,” says Nelson Lafon, Forest Wildlife Program Manager for the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.
Photo courtesy of Jaclyn B/Nextdoor
A bicyclist has been hospitalized after a crash in Belle Haven last night (Monday) that involved another cyclist and an SUV.
Fairfax County police were on the scene of the crash at Belle Haven and Fort Hunt roads around 7:30 p.m., the department reported. The intersection was closed for more than three hours while police investigated.
One of the bicyclists, a man, was transported to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to police, who said the SUV driver remained on the scene.
The crash remains under investigation by detectives with the Fairfax County Police Department’s Crash Reconstruction Unit.
Crash Reconstruction Unit detectives continue to investigate this crash. The man remains hospitalized. Belle Haven Road is now open. Follow our blog, https://t.co/lhGv3NDvYs, for any available updates. #FCPDhttps://t.co/9YSWbsRvNI
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) May 10, 2022
