Politics & Government

Fairfax County Launches New Hurricane Reporting Tool

Residents can notify county of downed trees and more online.

Fairfax County residents can now report the effects of Hurricane Sandy – including downed trees, nonfunctioning traffic lights and more – from their computers.

The county has launched its new crowd-source reporting map so that residents can let officials know what they see in their communities when they see it.

Fairfax County’s emergency information blog stresses that the tool is not a replacement for 911, and that residents should still call 911 if they find themselves in an emergency. The blog also urges people not to risk their own personal safety to notify officials of incidents.

Find out what's happening in Annandalewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Residents can now report power outages, road flooding, downed trees and nonfunctioning traffic lights at https://fairfaxcountysandy.crowdmap.com. As of 3:30 p.m. Monday, people south of Annandale reported multiple power outages and people living northwest of Oakton reported a downed tree, a traffic signal out and more. 

People experiencing power outages should call their power company immediately and not use this reporting tool as a substitute for calling in an outage. The county wants the reports strictly for informational purposes. (Monday's updates on regional power outages is available here.)

Find out what's happening in Annandalewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“We will monitor your reports. If we see something significant that you share, we will share it with emergency responders/planners,” according to the Emergency Blog. “This will give us a selected sense of what’s happening across Fairfax County as a result of Hurricane Sandy.”

Note: If a tree falls and hits your house, here's what to do. 


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