St. Matthews man still boating to house after historic flood

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ST. MATTHEWS, S.C. (WOLO) — More than six weeks after historic flooding, a St. Matthews man still needs to take a boat to get to his house. He’s an avid hunter and fisherman, but Marty Smoak is not trying to fish in front of his house. A five to seven acre lake formed across his driveway off Old State Road during October’s historic flooding. It’s all rainwater. Smoak’s house is fine. It’s the two-foot deep water that’s pushed him into a rental. Smoak needs to pump the water out, but he’s not willing to take on the liability of moving it across the highway. The job has been quoted for $7,800. Fixing his driveway will cost around $23,000. Smoak submitted all the necessary information to FEMA and the Small Business Administration a couple weeks ago, but he says he’s getting the run-around. Since October 4, he’s talked to six people from S.B.A., at least 20 people from the American Red Cross, and at least two FEMA representatives every day. A handful of people have come out to inspect the property, but Smoak says no one can give him a straight answer. He says his physical house has been assessed twice. He got about $4,000 from FEMA to make repairs. Both times, though, he was told the water sitting out front is preventing them from assessing the damage to his property. Smoak says he’ll keep calling, and until he gets this water removed, he’s not giving up hope about the future of his driveway. Smoak is expected to hear something back from FEMA tomorrow. He says he plans to appeal if they reject giving him financial help.