Wedding & Event Venue Near Orangeburg, SC.

Orangeburg County, S.C. (WACH) — Governor Henry McMaster has declared a State of Emergency in response to the flooding that has impacted the eastern Midlands and portions of the Lowcountry.

Team South Carolina has been responding to the impacts of flooding and subsequent road closures in portions of the state throughout the day," said Governor Henry McMaster. "The State of Emergency will ensure that our response teams have every tool at their disposal to continue their efforts.

According to the National Weather Service, the widespread rainfall reached 7 to 10 inches in the eastern Midlands regions, with some areas reached up to 15 inches.

Edisto River will continue to experience flooding into the next week, however, South Carolina is not expected to see significant rainfall totals over the next few days.

Residents are urged to avoid driving on flooded roadways, barricades and areas that experienced major impact,especially at night.

After a night of heavy rainfall, many roads in Orangeburg were closed due to flooding. Some of the roads were even washed away because of the high-water levels in ponds.

According to Orangeburg County, all schools will be closed on Friday Nov 8, due to that flooding.

North Rd. was one of those roads that was washed away near Bull Swamp. Wach Fox spoke with some residents who said that this storm was worse than Hurricane Helene just a month ago in terms of flooding.

“It was bad then but it’s far worse now.” said local resident Terry Kiser.

Terry lives about a mile away from bull swamp and says that this creek which is now a raging river goes right by his home.

“This creek that’s behind us, runs through our property so we were a little bit concerned about what might be washing down that way.” said Terry.

On North Road many areas were blocked off Thursday due to flooding especially in low lying areas.

According to the Skywatch weather team, the Orangeburg area saw roughly 11in of rain overnight.

According to reports, about 30 minutes away from Orangeburg, a person in Norway had to be rescued from the flooding.

“These DOT guys, they do a jam up job, but they got their hands full with this one.” said Terry.

There is no set timeline for when this portion of north road will be open again but in the meantime people who live here will have to find an alternate route.

The rainfall has led to over 115 road closures throughout the county, flash flooding, rescues and other issues.

ORANGEBURG COUNTY, S.C. — Over the last 24 hours, the northwestern side of Orangeburg County has gotten almost 13.5 inches of rain.

The rainfall has led to over 115 road closures throughout the county, flash flooding, rescues and more.

The main road between North and Orangeburg is washed away, leaving residents to find alternative routes to and from work. As a result, Orangeburg County Schools were closed Thursday and will be again on Friday.

North Mayor Jeff Washington is asking residents to be careful when leaving their homes.

“If you at home, if you don’t have to go out, please stay at home until we take care of some of these problems," Washington said. "We’re begging you to stay home, stay off the roads until we solve some of these problems.”

RELATED: Schools to be closed again in Orangeburg after flooding damages roads, bridges

Over in Livingston, many residents like Tim Martin and his family have no way of getting out of their homes due to the heavy rain's damage to driveways.

“The driveway, I guess it got washed out by the rain," Martin said. "The rain came over the pond and washed the driveway out, and now it looks like a big crater. That’s more than we’ve had here in a long time. I mean, it's been a long time, so its going to take us a while to fix it."

In the city of Orangeburg, Edisto Memorial Gardens is under water, with spillage pouring onto Riverside Drive, John C. Calhoun Drive and Russell Street. Officials are not sure of when the flooding will stop.

City Administrator Sidney Evering tells residents to follow traffic cones and to be safe.

“Well, what’s going on behind us is some folks that got stranded in some stores, and we’re asking that you please be safe and do not drive through water," Evering said. "Understand that people are curious. Please turn around, maintain some distance because we want everyone to be safe in these situations.”

Governor Henry McMaster on Thursday declared a State of Emergency to assist South Carolina's response to the flooding in the eastern Midlands and portions of the Lowcountry. The executive order activates the South Carolina Emergency Operations Plan and supplements ongoing and possible future state response efforts.

For those in the city of Orangeburg that are displaced, the Samaritan House is an option for shelter, as is the city gym and North Central High School.

Motorists are encouraged to stay off the roads due to flooding in the western and central parts of Orangeburg County.

“Turn around, don't drown,” Orangeburg County Emergency Services Division Director Billy Staley said.

“Don't drive through flooded roads and don't drive around barricades. Limit your travel on the western end of the county,” he said.

At least 70 road closures were reported throughout the county due to more than 10 inches of rain falling in some locations in the western part of the county on Wednesday and Thursday, according to Staley.

The National Weather Service reported 13.52 inches of rain fell in a spot seven miles west of St. Matthews

The dam on North Road at S.C. 692, S.C. 172 and U.S. 178 failed.

Weather

North Road was closed.

The Bull Swamp Road bridge collapsed.

Staley doesn’t know when the roads will be reopened and the exact nature of the road damage.

Also, there were reports of water in some schools. Details were unavailable, but the Orangeburg County School District closed schools for the day.

Staley said the worst of the flooding occurred in the western part of the county.

Weather

In central Orangeburg County “flooding is hit and miss.”

There were no reports of fatalities or storm-related injuries through Thursday morning, Staley said.

There were three vehicle water rescues in the western end of the county overnight.

About 12.45 inches of rain fell at a weather reporting station about five miles east of North and about 10.95 inches of rain fell about three miles northwest of Orangeburg. The rainfall amounts were recorded by Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, and Snow Network Volunteers.

About 8.64 inches of rain fell at the Orangeburg Municipal Airport, according to the National Weather Service.

About 7.44 inches fell about three miles east of St. Matthews and about 10.40 inches fell about five miles northeast of Denmark.

For real-time road closure information, the public is encouraged to visit the Orangeburg County Emergency Operations Center Facebook page.

Calhoun County

Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency Director David Chojnacki said the county was also dealing with flooded roads.

Some of the roads experiencing flooding were Caw Caw Highway and Burke Road and Columbia Road near Interstate 26.

Colonel Thompson Highway (U.S. 601) near Hemlock Road, northeast of St. Matthews, was also flooded.

The Calhoun County Sheriff's Office was out in the county directing traffic due to traffic lights being out at a number of intersections, Chojnacki said.

Local News

Chojnacki said there were several water outages in the Sandy Run area as crews were in the process of doing repairs.

Boil water advisories are in place for Columbia Road for addresses between 6009 Columbia Road through 7027 Columbia Road.

Other boil water advisories in place include:

• Caw Caw Highway

• Stabler Farm Road

• Leap Frog Lane

• Merrybell Lane

• Burke Road

• Deep Ridge Court

• Air Lane

Customers in these areas are asked to boil water for one minute before drinking or cooking.

Chojnacki said there were a couple of motor vehicle accidents due to vehicles hydroplaning. The S.C. Department of Transportation has had crews out all night responding to flooded roadways.

The Calhoun County Public School District was operating on a two-hour delay.

Bamberg County schools are on an e-learning day.

ORANGEBURG COUNTY, S.C. — Heavy overnight rains in Orangeburg and Calhoun Counties have led to flooded roads, damaged bridges, and over 100 road closures. That's in addition to a disruption of water services in western Orangeburg County and schools in both counties either being delayed or closed on Thursday.

Rain began moving through the area Wednesday night and continued into Thursday morning with some radar estimates suggesting 12-15 inches of rain could have fallen in some areas of Orangeburg County within a 24 hour period.

At one point a flash flood warning was issued for much of Orangeburg and part of Calhoun County.

Thursday morning, Orangeburg County Emergency Operations released a list of over 100 roads that have been closed throughout the county due to flooding issues. Here is a link to that list. There are unconfirmed references in that list to possible damage to dams and bridges.

Viewers' images of flooding in Orangeburg County

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BELLE DAVIS

Davis Pond off Pond View

News19 talked to Adam Livingston, with the Silver Springs Water District, after reports of a disruption of water service in Neeses in Orangeburg County. Silver Springs supplies water service and fire protection to rural areas of western Orangeburg County, including the towns of Livingston and Neeses.

Livingston said crews were out assessing the damage to the water system caused by the heavy rain and flooding. He said the main damage is coming from overflow of ponds and dams where rushing water has cause lines to break. Crews are having to wait for the water to recede before they can begin repairs to the main water lines that are visible. Then, he says, the water company will have to wait for the county or SC Dept. of Transportation to being repairing the roads before repairs to the lines that are buried under the roads.

There will also be a period where service will have to be cut to customers so that pressure can build back up in the lines, returning service to normal.

Livingston says the entire process could take days to complete. He asks for patience while repairs are made.

Earlier Thursday morning, the heavy rains also led school districts to change their plans. Orangeburg County School District administrators first announced a three-hour delay Thursday morning in an email around 7 a.m. The district then updated conditions to close schools for Thursday and then Friday:

Due to the current road conditions across the county, with over 130 significant road closures still in place, Orangeburg County School District schools will remain closed on Friday, November 8, 2024.

These closures are necessary, as many roads have not yet been fully assessed for safe travel by school buses and parents.

This decision was made with careful consideration, and we have been in constant contact with Orangeburg County Emergency Management Services to monitor conditions closely. The safety of our students and staff is our highest priority.

Thank you for your understanding and support as we navigate this situation. We will continue to provide updates as they become available.

Calhoun County School District said it will operate on a two hour delay Friday for everyone. Students are to report by 10am. Staff are to report two hours later than normal reporting time. This delay is to allow for safe travels during daylight hours. Both breakfast and lunch will be served to students.

Rain is forecast to continue throughout the morning, ending sometime around 3 p.m. Thursday. For the latest weather forecasts, check out wltx.com/weather or download the free weather app.

WLTX will continue to update this story as details become available.

The creation of this content included the use of AI based on templates created, reviewed and edited by journalists in the newsroom. Read more on our AI policy here.

On Thursday at 3:54 a.m. an updated flash flood warning was issued by the NWS Columbia SC. The warning is for Bamberg, Calhoun, Clarendon, Lexington, Orangeburg, Richland and Sumter counties.

"At 3:54 a.m., Doppler radar and automated rain gauges indicated heavy rain falling across the warned area. Between 4 and 7 inches of rain have fallen. Additional rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches are possible in the warned area. Flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly," according to the NWS. "This includes Interstate 26 between mile markers 124 and 161."

Locations impacted by the warning include Sumter, Orangeburg, Bamberg, Denmark, Brookdale, South Sumter, St. Matthews, Eastover, Elloree, Claflin College, South Carolina State University, Edisto Gardens, Orangeburg County Airport, Congaree National Park, Gadsden, Sandy Run, Santee State Park, Hopkins, Poinsett State Park and Swansea.

"Flash flooding of small creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses as well as other poor drainage and low-lying areas," adds the NWS. "Most flooding deaths occur in vehicles. Never drive through a flooded roadway or around barricades. Turn around, don't drown. Flooded roadways are nearly impossible to see at night. Avoid traveling in this area. Turn around, don't drown."

This warning is in effect until 5:30 a.m.

For either residents or campers of flood-prone, low-lying areas, take immediate action and seek higher ground. Follow evacuation instructions without delay. If time permits, lock your home upon departure and disconnect utilities and appliances. Avoid entering basements or rooms where electrical outlets or cords are submerged in water. If you see sparks or hear buzzing, crackling, snapping, or popping sounds, evacuate the area immediately. Refrain from entering water that may have electricity in it and avoid walking through floodwaters. Even 6 inches of moving water can pose a serious risk of knocking you off your feet. If you find yourself trapped by moving water, move to the highest possible point and contact emergency services, and dial 911.

During periods of intense rainfall, the risk of flooding increases, particularly in low-lying and flood-prone areas. It is imperative to avoid driving through any water on the road, even if it seems shallow. According to the NWS, most cars can be swept away by just 12 inches of rushing water.

What is hydroplaning?

Hydroplaning is the term for when a vehicle begins sliding uncontrollably on wet roads.

This happens when water in front of the tire builds up faster than the vehicle's weight can push water out of the way. The water pressure then causes the vehicle to rise and slide on a thin layer of water between the tires and the road, making the driver lose control. The three main causes of hydroplaning are:

In the event of your vehicle hydroplaning, here's what to know:

Source: The National Weather Service

This article was generated by the South Carolina Bot, software that analyzes structured information, such as data, and applies it to articles based on templates created by journalists in the newsroom. No human journalist was harmed in this experiment. You can report errors or bugs to mcclatchybot@mcclatchy.com.

This story was originally published November 6, 2024, 6:17 PM.