Community Corner
The Monday Roundup
Patch's roundup of some of the area's top headlines over the past week.
City Officials Give BG&E Low Marks on Hurricane Irene Peformance
During a briefing with city officials earlier this month, representatives from Baltimore Gas and Electric received low marks from the city council on their peformance during Hurricane Irene.
City officials blasted the company for lack of communication between utility representatives and local emergency responders during and after the storm, and the slow removal of trees throughout the city that were downed, reports the Laurel Leader.
Find out what's happening in Laurelwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Officials from BG&E told the council that they were overwhelmed with service calls during the hurricane.
"In Laurel, 23 percent [1,574] of the city's customer base lost power, compared to 65 percent of most counties, and 70 percent of Laurel customers had their power restored within three days," said Darryl Stokes, a BGE vice president in the Leader. "Once the storm cleared, public safety was the first thing we focused on, such as hospital centers, 911 calls and pumping facilities."
Find out what's happening in Laurelwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Read more here.
In Maryland, Number of Suspended Licenses Soar
Could a little-known new state law be responsible for an increase in suspended driver's licenses?
According to The Capital, a new state driving law that now requires drivers to notify courts to contest tickets has resulted in a surge of license suspensions for failing to appear in court. Previously, court dates were assigned in all traffic cases. The report suggests that the new law was not properly publicized, resulting in fewer drivers knowing they must now request court dates.
The Motor Vehicle Administration suspended 89,868 licenses in the first seven months of 2011, The Capital reports. That is up from 66,609 during the same period in 2010 and 66,940 in 2009.
Read more here.
County Executive Rushern Baker to Appear in West Laurel
Prince George's County Executive Rushern Baker is set to speak at the West Laurel Civic Association's fall meeting later this month.
According to The Gazette, Baker will be on hand for the fall meeting beginning at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 27.
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