After Florence: Flood fears intensify as rivers rise in the Carolinas

Conway spokesman Taylor Newell said the water could be "4 feet higher" than Hurricane Matthew in 2016.

In North Carolina, Governor Roy Cooper warned residents to "stay alert" when the water rises.

"People in flood zones or near waterways must remain vigilant as rivers and stay over their shores in the coming days," Cooper said.

Women's bodies trapped in a flooded police van have been found

There are still unanswered questions about the deaths of two mentally ill patients who drowned on Tuesday in a prison transport van towed by South Carolina floodwaters.

The victims, whose bodies were found by divers on Wednesday, were identified as Windy Newton, 45, and Nicolette Green, 43, said the Horry County Sheriff's Office.

The women were transported by sheriffs from a Loris hospital and the Waccamaw Mental Health Center in Conway to McLeod Health Darlington, CNN affiliate reported.

The two MPs escaped from the vehicle but were unable to open the doors to get the women out, the authorities said. They were placed on administrative leave, said the sheriff's office.

"We are sorry," said Horry County Sheriff Phillip Thompson on Wednesday. "We are very proud of what we are doing, we are working hard to protect and serve our citizens, and we are very sorry that this event has taken place."

The investigation was outsourced to the South Carolina law enforcement division and the sheriff's office launched an internal investigation, officials said.

Women are among at least 36 people who died as a result of the storm.

Thousands stay in shelters

Of these, about 7,800 are in shelters in North Carolina.

The roads were so impassable in Kinston, North Carolina, that the National Guard used helicopters to dispense water.

In Conway, South Carolina, some residents were returning home Wednesday, but only to pick up their personal belongings and evacuate again after the authorities declared that further flooding could occur.

"We warn everyone not to be too confident," said Adam Emrick, city administrator. "The water will come back, we are worried about Friday."

Chris Ross has been in a shelter since he fled his home in Fayetteville about a week ago when the National Guard withdrew people from his neighborhood.

"People can only take as much," Ross told WRAL. "He's bringing a lot of people here, trying to keep their sanity together."

Farmers hit hard

Even after farmers have moved thousands of animals up the storm, many have suffered losses.

Allison Cavenaugh and her husband, who own a home and poultry farm for 80,000 chickens in Wallace, North Carolina, returned home for the first time this week to find their chickens drowned.

"Everything is gone," Cavenaugh told WRAL.

North Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler, who conducted an aerial survey of the damage on Tuesday, said the floods hit the country's top six agricultural counties.

"This was an unprecedented storm with floods likely to overtake all recent memory storms," ​​Troxler said in a statement. "The flood footprint of this storm covers much of the same area affected by the floods caused by Hurricane Matthew in 2016, which only exacerbates the burden on these farmers."

In South Carolina, farmers are suffering damage to crops of cotton, peanuts and hemp, the state said.