South Carolina officials warned Monday that the dangers from the state’s unprecedented floods weren’t over — and that clearing skies didn’t erase the threat of shifting water and unstable roads.
At least 12 weather-related deaths in the Carolinas were blamed on the vast rainstorm — 10 in South Carolina and two in North Carolina.
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley said authorities were expecting to evacuate more people as the floodwaters flowed from the state’s midlands to the coast.
%E2%80%9CThis%20is%20not%20over%20%E2%80%94%20just%20because%20the%20rain%20stops%20doesn%E2%80%99t%20mean%20we%20are%20out%20of%20the%20woods.%20Even%20though%20you%E2%80%99re%20not%20seeing%20rain%2C%20there%20is%20still%20water%20out%20there.%E2%80%9D’
“This is not over — just because the rain stops doesn’t mean we are out of the woods,” she told reporters. “Even though you’re not seeing rain, there is still water out there.”
The state Office of Emergency Management said at least eight dams across the state had been breached by flood waters. Residents near Forest Acres were being urged to evacuate after the Overcreek Dam was breached shortly after 3:30 p.m. ET, Columbia City Manager Teresa Wilson said.
Authorities, meanwhile, were concerned that water from Forest Acres could run into the Katherine Dam — causing it to breach and re-inundate areas of Columbia where floodwaters had receded.
President Barack Obama signed a disaster declaration Monday night, ordering federal aid to help recovery efforts. The declaration makes federal funding available to people in Charleston, Dorchester, Georgetown, Horry, Lexington, Orangeburg, Richland and Williamsburg counties.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency said that damage surveys are continuing in other areas and that more counties could be designated for assistance.
By Monday evening, 365 state-maintained roads and 166 bridges were closed, the state Transportation Department said. Forty thousand people across the state remained without fresh running water, and 26,000 were without electricity.
Haley said 1,300 National Guard members were on duty and had performed 25 aerial rescues so far. Rescue teams were walking door to door to check on people stranded by the flooding.
“This is a Hugo-level event,” said Maj. Gen. Robert Livingston, head of the state National Guard, referring to the September 1989 hurricane that devastated Charleston. “This water doesn’t fool around.”
Haley said that although the emergency services were shifting from a response to assessment mode, the state remains in a “vulnerable” situation after going through a storm it “has never seen before.”
While Hurricane Joaquin missed the East Coast, it fueled a “fire hose” of tropical moisture aimed directly at the state, the weather service said. Parts of South Carolina were told to expect as much as three more inches of rain before the storm moved offshore.
The conditions prompted officials to warn residents not to leave their homes for any reason — even on foot. On top of the flood threat, the National Weather Service also warned of 30-mph winds gusts, increasing the risk of falling trees.
Columbia Fire Chief Aubry Jenkins said there had been too many rescues to keep count. Among those were 90 people in Irmo, 10 miles northwest of Columbia, who were forced to evacuate their homes by boat, NBC station WIS reported.








