Source: MLADEN ANTONOV / Getty
After a week of persistent rain, on Monday the showers tapered off and South Carolina turned to surveying a road system shredded by historic flooding, and thousands of residents faced the prospect of going days without running water. The governor cautioned communities downstream that they may still see rising water and to be prepared for more evacuations.
Over 900 people were already staying in shelters and nearly 40,000 people were without water. At least 11 weather-related deaths in two states were a result of the enormous rainstorm. The rains moved north into North Carolina and the mid-Atlantic states on Monday.
The rainstorm dumped more than a foot of rain across South Carolina and drenched several other states. According to the National Weather Service Sunday was the wettest day in the history of South Carolina’s capital city Columbia.
Among weather stations with over 50 years of record-keeping, the 16.6 inches of rain that fell on Gills Creek near downtown Columbia on Sunday was the rainiest day in one single spot in the U.S. in more than 16 years. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has said on Monday, that 550 roads and bridges were closed across the state.
All roads and bridges will have to be checked for structural integrity, which could take weeks or longer. Governor Haley said floodwaters will continue to rise in some areas as rainwater runs down the state toward the coast.
According to Haley nine people have died in the state since the storm started and two additional weather-related deaths were reported in North Carolina. Haley also said that 25 emergency shelters are open, housing more than 900 people and meanwhile utility crews are working to restore power to 26,000 people still without power.
As a result of the flooding hundreds of weekend rescues were forced to occur and the drinking water supply for Columbia was threatened, with officials warning some could be without potable water for days because of water main breaks. The capital city encouraged all 375,000 of its water customers to boil water before drinking.
Columbia Police Chief William Holbrook issued a statement Monday saying search teams would check for those still needing evacuation, and the front doors of homes will be checked with a fluorescent orange X once searched. Many schools and colleges canceled classes Monday and Tuesday, and some businesses planned to stay shuttered.
State climatologists have said the sun could peek out Tuesday.
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