While the world didn't actually end at midnight, many Annapolis residents have felt apocalyptic symptoms anyway.

Around 9 p.m. last night, two main feeders into Annapolis and a high voltage transmission light went down, causing nearly 70,000 people to lose power, according to Baltimore Gas and Electric. Videos like the one below have been circulating, showing the sky light up with eerie blue and green flashes.

Though almost all of the power is back up in Anne Arundel County today, there have been some weather-related outages and the downtown area has experienced pretty severe flooding, pictured. A Coastal Flood Warning is in effect until 7 p.m.

Here's hoping that our friends in Annapolis ride out the flooding and power outages safely. 

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On the heels of their own late-season fireworks, the Baltimore Orioles will sponsor this year's New Year's Eve Spectacular at the Inner Harbor, the Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts (BOPA) announced today.

The 30-plus year downtown tradtion begins Dec. 31 at 9 p.m. with live music at the Inner Harbor Ampitheater at Pratt and Light Streets and concludes at Jan. 1, 2013 at 12:30 a.m.

The fireworks display, the largest in the region, according to BOPA, will begin at the stroke of midnight. The Inner Harbor, Harbor East, Fells Point and Federal Hill are all prime viewing spots. 

According to a report prepared by Forward Analytics, an estimated 40,000 people from outside Baltimore visited the city on New Year's Eve 2010, including 14,000 from out of state, with an estimated direct and indirect economic impact of $6.9 million.

For boaters, public docking will be allowed until 11 p.m.

More information for boaters can be found on the...

In the wake of Friday’s horrific elementary school shooting in Connecticut, Gov. Martin O’Malley told reporters today that he is likely to introduce legislation that could include an assault rifle ban and other gun control measures.

O’Malley also said proposals could include mental health and school safety legislation.

“I think there’s been a change of heart and a greater open-mindedness in the wake of the murder of the innocent in Connecticut for people to take a look at especially assault weapons,” said O’Malley, quoted by the Washington Post this afternoon. “You look at some of these guns, and it’s just hard to conclude that these guns should be in the hands of anyone who isn’t a soldier on a battlefield or a law-enforcement officer sent into a tactical...

Managing Editor of Special Editions Ken Iglehart attended the Klein's ShopRite gun buy-back in Northeast Baltimore. Here's what he observed:

   People streaming to the gun buy-back in the city’s Coldstream Homestead Montebello neighborhood Saturday probably figured they’d be in and out in a few minutes with their $100 Klein’s ShopRite grocery gift card in hand. So many weren’t really dressed for a long wait.

     But as the line into St. Paul Baptist Church grew to a block long, it was clear this would take a while—people waited over an hour to get up to the table in the (thankfully warm) church staffed by Northeastern District police officers.

    “I didn’t dress for this,” said one 60-something woman, as she stomped her feet to keep warm, clutching a box with her deceased husband’s silver snub-nosed revolver in it (she brought the ammo, too). “But I don’t need this thing—I need to get rid of it.”

   And, despite the cold and the long wait, no one left the line. In fact, if ShopRite—which worked with Baltimore City Council President Bernard C. “Jack” Young and the Baltimore Police Department to arrange the event—...