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Parts of South Carolina continued to face severe floods on Tuesday as they prepared for a new wave 11 days after Hurricane Florence made landfall.
The slow storm poured trillions of gallons of rain into the Carolinas, and the water continued to rise swollen rivers toward the ocean. Although North Carolina was the most affected by the deadly storm, some of the most flooded rivers cross the northeastern part of South Carolina.
Many roads around the area remained closed Tuesday and the children stayed at home while the authorities were preparing to use the schools as shelters.
The Waccamaw River in Conway, South Carolina, a town of about 23,000, was set to hit a record high on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service. Water levels are expected to exceed the peaks set by hurricanes Matthew and Floyd by three to four feet, the meteorological service said.
Downstream, on the coast of Georgetown County, South Carolina, authorities have urged residents of vulnerable areas to evacuate their buildings until the waters reach the ridge on Thursday or Friday. This includes areas along the Intracoastal, Waccamaw and Pee Dee waterways, and places that could be isolated by deteriorating road conditions, the county said.
"You have to prepare to leave if you live in these areas," Georgetown County Administrator Sel Hemingway told a news conference.
The equipment sits on a partially submerged fairway at the Aberdeen Golf Course in Longs, S.C., on Monday. Water levels are expected to exceed the peaks set by hurricanes Matthew and Floyd by three to four feet.
Photo:
Jason Lee / Associated Press
The storm killed at least 46 people in the Carolinas and Virginia, authorities said. North Carolina alone has recorded 36 storm-related deaths, according to a recent state count.
In Conway, authorities released Tuesday a video on Facebook of a boat ride on an inflated waterway that was showing houses and parking lots swallowed by the waters.
The Horry County School District, where Conway is located, said that it was necessary to keep the schools closed all week. In Georgetown County, schools were closed until further notice due to imminent flooding.
In North Carolina, authorities are assessing the water conditions on the Cape Fear River after the rising waters submerged a pool of ash near a lake.
Duke Energy
Corp.
Power plant.
The burning of coal creates ashes that may contain arsenic, selenium, lead and mercury. Duke said that another waste called cenospheres – hollow beads of alumina and silica, light and hollow – entered the river. A spokesman for Duke said the company does not rule out that a small amount of ash could have entered the river but that the company's water quality tests show that the flood factory did not harm the river.
The state is waiting for the results of its own water quality tests.
Write to Jon Kamp at [email protected]
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