Traffic lights out, trees in roadway at key intersections in Columbia, Forest Acres

Motorists might want to avoid driving in downtown Columbia and Forest Acres Saturday, where the roads are mostly clear of debris but many traffic lights are out.

Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin in urging people to stay off the roads.

Traffic lights are out at major intersections, creating dangerous situations, particularly at the intersection of Forest Drive and Trenholm Road and at Assembly Street and Rosewood Drive.

Parts of Blossom, Assembly, Harden and Gervais streets – some of the city’s largest arteries – have no power. An SCE&G truck has responded to Blossom and Henderson Street near the University of South Carolina campus.

South Assembly is impassable. A railroad crossing bar is malfunctioning on Assembly near the California Dreaming restaurant, forcing drivers onto side streets. The crossing bars are down and the lights are flashing, but there’s no train.

Also, part of Rosewood Drive is impassable, as a power line is down near the Rosewood Hills neighborhood.

Scattered trees are down on neighborhood streets, including at Lee and Maple streets in the Old Shandon neighborhood and in the Heathwood neighborhood near Dreher High School.

Trees are also down across Forest Acres neighborhoods. Trenholm Road between Beltline Boulevard and Gervais Street is impassable. A tree is blocking Trenholm at Butler Street. Motorists should not drive too closely: The tree is tangled in power lines.

Water is pooling on some lower-lying roads. But electrical outages and trees are the bigger issues at this time.

Beaufort, Charleston and Richland counties have the highest numbers of customers without power, Gov. Nikki Haley said during her 10 a.m. briefing.

This story was originally published October 8, 2016 at 10:17 AM with the headline "Traffic lights out, trees in roadway at key intersections in Columbia, Forest Acres."