Page 5 - ATD 07 October,2015
P. 5
U.S. NEWS A5
Wednesday 7 October 2015
South Carolina sees sun, but flooding ordeal far from over
Polly Sim sorts through belongings outside her mother’s flooded home in Columbia, S.C., on Tues- Roads and bridges were
day, Oct. 6, 2015. More than 3 feet of water inundated the town home, destroying furniture and taking longer to restore:
keepsakes and washing away a garden maintained by Sim’s mother Rankin Craig, who was Miss Some 200 engineers were
South Carolina 1954. inspecting about 470 spots
that remained closed Tues-
(AP Photo/Jay Reeves) day, including a 75-mile
(120-kilometer) stretch of
Interstate 95 that connects
the southeastern U.S. to the
northeast.Much-feared
Hurricane Joaquin missed
the U.S. East Coast, but fu-
eled what experts at the
National Oceanic and At-
mospheric Administration
called a “fire hose” of trop-
ical moisture that aimed
directly at the state.
Authorities have made
hundreds of water rescues
since then, lifting people
and animals to safety.
About 800 people were
in two-dozen shelters, but
the governor expects that
number to rise.q
JEFFREY COLLINS the vast rainstorm. Six peo-
EMERY P. DALESIO ple drowned in their cars
Associated Press in Columbia, and several
COLUMBIA, South Caro- died after driving around
lina (AP) — The Carolinas safety barriers onto flood-
saw sunshine Tuesday after ed roads.
days of inundation, but it Flooding is a concern for
could take weeks to recov- any urban area, where
er from being pummeled concrete covers soil that
by a historic rainstorm that would otherwise act as a
caused widespread flood- sponge in heavy rain. But
ing and 17 deaths. the multitude of waterways
Tuesday was the first dry in Columbia — where the
day since Sept. 24 in South Broad and Saluda rivers
Carolina’s state capital, come together to form the
Columbia, where a mid- Congaree — made the
night-to-6 a.m. curfew city a prime target.
was in effect. But officials Georgetown, one of Amer-
warned that new evacu- ica’s oldest cities, sits on
ations could come as the the coast at the conflu-
huge mass of water flows ence of four rivers. The his-
toward the sea, threaten- toric downtown flooded
ing dams and displacing over the weekend, and its
residents along the way. ordeal wasn’t over yet.
Of particular concern was In Effingham, east of Co-
the Lowcountry, where the lumbia, the Lynches River
Santee, Edisto and other was at nearly 20 feet (six
rivers make their way to meters) on Tuesday — five
the sea. Gov. Nikki Haley feet (1.5 meters) above
warned that several rivers flood stage.
were rising and had yet to Water distribution was a
reach their peaks. challenge. In the region
“God smiled on South Car- around Columbia, as many
olina because the sun is as 40,000 homes lacked
out. That is a good sign, but drinking water, and Mayor
... we still have to be cau- Steve Benjamin said 375,000
tious,” Haley said Tuesday water customers will likely
after taking an aerial tour. have to boil their water
“What I saw was disturb- before drinking or cooking
ing.” At least 15 weather- for “quite some time.” The
related deaths in South power grid was returning to
Carolina and two in North normal after nearly 30,000
Carolina were blamed on customers lost electricity.
