Residents near one Columbia, South Carolina, dam were told to flee Wednesday morning, as it was believed to be near its breaking point, potentially putting thousands in the path of millions of gallons of water.
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“We’re hanging our hat on that we’re not going to have that combination of tide and rain and such, ” he said. Other than that, it’s a loss.
“I’m fearing the worst on that”, Lott said. The city’s largest hospital is resorting to alternative water sources. Thirteen dams have failed, she also said.
Officials said efforts to secure the city’s water supply will succeed.
And just last month, the state Supreme Court revived a lawsuit challenging how the city has paid for maintenance to its water and sewer systems, saying “simply put, the statutes do not allow these revenues to be treated as a slush fund”. The community of Georgetown, farther north up the coast, could be see flooding over the next 12 hours, she said.
In another image of the storm’s otherworldly toll, state officials said caskets have popped out of the ground in 11 instances in six counties. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). Two hundred sixty-nine roads and 134 bridges were closed, mostly in the central and coastal portions of South Carolina, according to the state Department of Transportation. Skies have since cleared but authorities say the flood threat remains in areas near rain-swollen rivers near the coast.
At least 17 people in South Carolina and North Carolina have died in the storm.
On Sunday, a Coast Guard crew aboard an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter rescued Cristi Mueller and her 15-month-old daughter from the roof of their home in Huger.
A muddy American flag rests in a window of a home damaged by…
My house “is smelly”.
John Shelton of the U.S. Geological Survey says flooding can be a concern for any urban area, with an abundance of concrete covering soil that would otherwise act as a sponge for excessive rains. “Now I’m basically going to have to start over with four kids”. “My cars are under water”.
National Guard humvees plow through flood waters on Highway 377… There is still a boil water advisory for a few residents. She and her husband, Mike, had just moved there in June and her photos were still in boxes on the floor when the flood hit. “Material goods can be replaced, maybe, but the memories of course, cannot”.
Information for this article was contributed by Jeffery Collins, Susanne M. Schafer, Adam Beam, Emery P. Dalesio and Meg Kinnard of The Associated Press.
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Scott Berry removes belongings from his mother’s flooded home in Columbia, S.C., Wednesday, October 7, 2015. Commissioner Hugh Weathers said he flew over flooded areas several times this week and met with state and federal agriculture officials to begin assessing the damage.
Weathers says his initial estimate is conservative and could rise.
Fortunately, no additional heavy precipitation is forecast for South Carolina for the next several days, although light rain (less than 1 inch) is possible over the weekend. Three others were added earlier Wednesday. Residents have also been asked to conserve water until crews fix the damage.
How long that will take, nobody knows.
In the days since sheriff’s deputies pounded on their door, Ronan, his wife Jill and their dog and two cats have bunked with about 200 other evacuees on military cots crammed into a middle school auditorium in Columbia.
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“Yesterday, we made the extremely hard decision to cancel classes for the week due to the stress 34,000 students would place on the region’s recovering infrastructure”, university President Harris Pastides said.
