Weather

Hurricane Dorian In South Carolina: Emergency Centers Set Up

With the storm continuing to move up the east coast, and away from South Carolina — residents across the state can begin returning home.

Gus Saltonstall's profile picture
Gus Saltonstall, Patch StaffVerified Patch Staff Badge
|
https://test.patch.com/img/cdn20/users/23306266/20190906/110417/styles/patch_image/public/southcarolinadorian___06105902640.jpg
An Isle of Palms resident clears the drain on Hartnett Blvd. during Hurricane Dorian at the Isle of Palms, S.C., Thursday, Sept. 5, 2019, in Charleston, S.C. (AP Photo/ Mic Smith))
https://test.patch.com/img/cdn20/users/23306266/20190906/110417/styles/patch_image/public/southcarolinadorian2___06110051948.jpg
Floodwaters swirl around a storm drain as heavy rain falls from Hurricane Dorian, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2019, in North Myrtle Beach, S.C. (Jason Lee/The Sun News via AP)
https://test.patch.com/img/cdn20/users/23306266/20190906/110417/styles/patch_image/public/hurricanedoriansc3___06110200077.jpg
Isle of Palms residents look at a downed tree on Hartnett Blvd. during Hurricane Dorian at the Isle of Palms, S.C., Thursday, Sept. 5, 2019, in Charleston, S.C. (AP Photo/Mic Smith)

ACROSS SOUTH CAROLINA — Governor Henry McMaster lifted the remaining evacuation orders Friday across South Carolina. With weather conditions improving, and Hurricane Dorian continuing to move north up the coast toward North Carolina — residents in Charleston, Berkeley, Dorchester, Georgetown, and Horry can now return home.

The Palmetto State is no longer in danger of life-threatening storm surges, but flooding is still a possibility across many cities in South Carolina, and McMaster's office told residents returning home to prepare for lengthy travel times, blocked roadways, and standing water.

Emergency Operation Centers have also been set up in Horry, Georgetown, and Charleston counties to help with the recovery process. McMaster is set to visit all three of them over the course of the day.

Find out what's happening in Across South Carolinafor free with the latest updates from Patch.

With damages expected across the state, the South Carolina Emergency Management Division says residents should report any damages to the SC Emergency Manager Mobile app.

About 80,000 people are still without power in the state, as Dominion Energy, the second largest provider of electricity in SC, had more than 53,000 people without power.

Find out what's happening in Across South Carolinafor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Dominion Energy also provides a real-time map of where power is out: Outage Map.

Dorian is also now a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph, according to the 11 a.m. update from the National Hurricane Center. Comparatively, the storm was a Category 5 — with 185 miles per hour wind when it made landfall in the Bahamas earlier this week.

Flooding occurred throughout the state, but hit Charleston and Myrtle Beach particularly hard in the past two days.

A possible tornado even occurred in Myrtle Beach.

Mcmaster acted quickly earlier in the week to ensure every possible precaution was taken for the residents of South Carolina. Mandatory evacuations began in the state on Monday, Sept. 2, and the Governor issued a strong warning on Tuesday, Sept. 3 to all residents.

On Wednesday, Sept. 4 high volumes of people began fleeing Charleston and other coastal cities in the state, as more than 800,000 people were under evacuation orders.

Evacuation orders were then lifted for residents in the inland counties of Beaufort, Jasper, and Colleton on Thursday night, before the rest of the evacuations orders were rescinded Friday morning.

The Charleston International Airport also reopened Friday morning at 7 a.m., after it was closed on Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Check back in for updates, as this is an ongoing story.

See also:

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

More from Across South Carolina