Happy Hump-Day! I can see you slumping over and sleeping at your desk, so I’ve helpfully ended each news-blip with a BOOM, in honor of the Black Eyed Peas, Brett from FOTC, and the DC Metro transit system. Stay awake! Boom!

For those metro riders who have finally managed to assuage their fears of track-jumpers and crashed cars—stop reading. Prince of Petworth reports that there was more trouble on the red line yesterday. One witness said his car had “a series of explosions, with little fire and sparks everywhere.” Another mentioned a “loud BOOM!” and a decent cloud of smoke at Metro Center. And before that fiasco, the car reportedly stopped to let a sick passenger off the train. Coincidence? Metro says the train “lost one of its collector shoes”. My theory is that there was an X-Men/Heroes/Men in Black character on the train who beat up an invisible bad-guy, and than erased everyone’s memory. Draw your own conclusions. Boom!

Read More "Morning Roundup: The “Loud BOOM!” Edition" »

When it comes to public transportation, residents of the greater Washington area are relatively fortunate.  Metro trains and buses come with relative frequency, they are clean (for the most part), and they can accommodate the masses of commuters and tourists that congregate in this city.  But since Saturday, four people have died at local transit stations.  Shouldn't this be cause for some concern about the system? Read More "Public Transit Woes: How Safe Are We?" »

And no, that's not a typo or a joke.

A huge water main break has flooded River Road. The rising waters have trapped drivers in their cars. The scene is pretty intense, live feeds are airing on the national cable channels right now. According to WTOP, 10 people have already been rescued:

"River Road is a raging torrent of water. River Road is closed between Seven Locks and Bradley Boulevard.

A Maryland State Police helicopter has been lowering baskets down to the cars. The people inside then carefully climbing into them.

The rescues are not far from the entrance to Congressional Country Club.

Montgomery County Police tell WTOP Traffic that a 66-inch water main pump burst"

You can watch the coverage unfold live.

Update 9:20 a.m.: The Post has its story up on the on-going rescues along River Road. They've made some calls:

Officials at the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission could not immediate provide details of when and how the underground water pipe broke in the vicinity of River Road and Fenway Drive.

But the result -- waves of water covering River Road for several blocks -- left several cars trapped. Helicopters hovered over the scene, the whirring of their propellers adding to the stiff winds and blowing the already high waves over the sides of the trapped vehicles.

WJLA is reporting that MOCO police received a call for the water main break at 7:55 a.m. Those on the scene are estimating that the water is between four and five feet high. The station has this graph that should trouble people:

Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission confirms that this is a 66 inch water main break. They cannot get to the area to shut the water off right now and are trying to go further up the line to shut it off.