Top 12 Most-Read Stories on Burke Patch in 2012

The end of 2012 is amost here. Here's a look at the top 12 most-read stories on Burke Patch this year.

12.

Northern Virginians spent days preparing for the impact Hurricane Sandy would have on th area. One of the many updates on Burke Patch tracking the storm was this update on Oct. 27 which announced Sandy lessening to a Post-Tropical Cyclone. The storm left around 200,000 residents in Northern Virginia and Washington, DC, without power.

11. Fatal Crash Shuts Down Ox Road at Zion Drive; Elderly Woman Killed

In June, an elderly woman was killed and three others were injured in an afternoon crash at the intersection of Ox Road and Zion Drive.

10. Demolition of Springfield Mall Underway

All stores at Springfield Mall (minus anchor department stores) closed in July, but the demolition of the mall officially began in in late November.

9. Upset In Search Engine Rankings

A story from Tech Trends columnist Lydia Patrick comparing search engines Google, Bing and Yahoo was the ninth most-read story on Burke Patch.

8.

Burke and Springfield residents came together to help each other survive the surprise derecho storm that left thousands of residents in Northern Virginia without power for about a week.

7. IHOP Comes to Burke

In the very beginning of the year, IHOP announced that it would move into the Rolling Valley Mall shopping center next to Burger King.

6. Help Bryan's Family Search Thaiss Park

Members of the community came together to organize a search of Thaiss Park where the vehicle of missing Woodson High School senior Bryan Glenn was last seen. Glenn's body was later discovered in Thaiss Park. He ws missing for about a week.

5. Updated: Gun Found in Student Locker at Robinson Secondary School

A gun was found in the locker of a student at Robinson Secondary School in early December.

4. Springfield Mall to Close All but Anchor Stores

Springfield Mall announced in March that it would close all stores except the anchor department stores. Demolition on the mall began in late November (see number 10).

3. Onelife Fitness Comes to Rolling Valley Mall

Onelife Fitness club announced plans in January to move into Rolling Valley Mall in early 2012.

2. Update: Shooting Reported At Burke Target

In May, Fairfax County police responded to a shooting at the Target store in the 10300 block of New Guinea Road. A 56-year-old Burke woman later died at INOVA hospital from a self-inflicted single gunshot wound to the head.

And the number one most-read story was...

1. Burke Church Offers 'Ashes to Go'

Burke residents enjoyed reading about Burke United Methodist Church's "drive-thru" ashes service which they offered to commuters on Ash Wednesday back in February.