Gov. McMaster urges people to take flooding potential seriously

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) – Governor Henry McMaster said more than 300 thousand people have already evacuated the coastal region ahead of Hurricane Florence.

McMaster called this a deadly game of chess Tuesday, and the storm made a move that was pretty unpredictable, but all the emergency management teams say they’re one step ahead.

“As we have been predicting… this hurricane is unpredictable.” McMaster said.

According to the governor, 18 thousand people are in shelters. There are currently 34 shelters open with the capacity to take 35 thousand people. Three of those shelters are able to take pets.

Now that Florence has shifted its course, officials cannot stress enough that people need to evacuate now while they can.

“Because at some point the rescues will not be able to rescue because they too will have to take shelter.” McMaster said. 

The Labor licensing and regulation division said more than 750 fire personnel are ready for Swift Water search and rescue mission. Some teams coming from Tennessee, Louisiana and FEMA. Here in the midlands, McMaster said this could be worse than the 2015 floods. Many state agencies are urging citizens to take action now to limit the damage.

Department of Health and Environmental Control Director David Wilson said “I would encourage dam owners, whether it’s a state regulated dam or not, while the weather is still good to take steps to lower the water levels in their reservoirs in anticipation of the heavy rains.”

McMaster said flooding from North Carolina is likely to travel down to South Carolina due to the rivers flowing southward. The DNR says they want those with boats to prepare for heavy winds and flooding.

Director of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, Alvin Taylor said “If you’re a boater and in a flood prone area: Please refrain from joy riding to look at the flooded areas, to look at the homes that might be flooded, because the damage your wake can cause could be significant.”

Even though South Carolina has been through this the past four years, and dealt with the 2015 floods, McMaster wants people to realize even if they may not have had flooding then, they could now. So they urge anyone who is in low-lying areas to find higher ground and prepare.

“There’s so much coming, we know we’re going to have a lot of flooding.” McMaster said. “That’s why we’re encouraging people who have experienced flooding before, they’re likely to experience flooding again and no matter where you live find someplace safe to say.”