BERLIN – While many American beaches have polluted, unhealthy water, the Ocean City and Assateague beaches showed no reports of contaminants in local ocean waves, according to a national report released this week.“Everyone works very hard to keep it that way, even with 300,000 people visiting,” said Shelly Dawson, chair of the local Surfrider Foundation.Overall,… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – Some say that room tax revenue tells a more accurate story when attempting to gauge the resort’s level of success for the summer, and if that’s true, things are looking slightly below average for a second straight month.Room tax revenue for Ocean City fell 6 percent in June compared to last year,… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – With the stroke of Mayor Rick Meehan’s pen, Ocean City could be rid of a problematic thorn in its side as early as Tuesday morning.Councilman Jim Hall’s request for an emergency ordinance that would outlaw the sale or possession of salvia Divinorum within the town limits of Ocean City was answered with… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – The beach at 40th Street was evacuated for about an hour on Tuesday afternoon when a pipe bomb was discovered in the area.Around 1:50 p.m. on Tuesday, Ocean City police and the resort’s Fire and Bomb Squad responded to the beach at 40th Street in reference to a report of a pipe… Read more »

SNOW HILL – A new amendment to the 2006 Worcester County Comprehensive Plan called the Priority Preservation Area element will not include transfer development rights (TDRs), county elected officials decided last week during a discussion of the draft element and the recertification of the county land preservation program.The draft Priority Preservation Area (PPA) element is… Read more »

BERLIN – Recent motor vehicle accidents at the busy intersection of Berlin’s Main Street and Old Ocean City Boulevard could be prevented in future by improving visibility.Berlin resident Jim Hoppa, who witnessed an accident at Main Street and Old Ocean City Boulevard a few weeks ago, raised the question of visibility improvements at that intersection… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – Councilman Joe Hall says he wants to see salvia go away, but he doesn’t think the town should instill emergency legislation to stop a bad perception or image.Hall was the lone “nay” in Tuesday’s council decision to request for an emergency ordinance to be created that would make the sale or possession… Read more »

BERLIN – Tragedy struck this week when an elderly local woman was killed in a two-vehicle accident on Route 50 on Tuesday afternoon. Around 2:20 p.m., Maryland State Police responded to a serious motor vehicle collision on eastbound Route 50 just west of Jerry Mack Rd. The investigation revealed a 2006 Toyota operated by Mary… Read more »

SNOW HILL – Each year false alarms cost thousands of dollars in equipment, fuel and manhours and place lives in danger. To decrease the number of false alarms to which fire fighters and Emergency Medical Service (EMS) providers respond, the County Commissioners adopted Bill 09-3 (Public Safety–Nuisance Alarms) on June 16, a law that will… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) this week introduced legislation to pump millions of federal dollars into an expanded nutria eradication effort across Maryland, but even if approved, none of the funding will be headed to Worcester and the coastal bays because the area inexplicably does not have a problem with the voracious wetlands… Read more »