Irma still expected to ‘hit us hard’

Some rain, stiff winds and the threat of tornadoes. That — and a sigh of relief — is the forecast for South Carolina as Hurricane Irma’s projected track continued to move away from the state Sunday.

But S.C. leaders continued to warn Palmetto State residents that they still face dangers.

“Fortunately, (Irma is) not hitting us like we thought it might, but it will still hit us and hit us hard,” S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster warned Sunday afternoon.

Even while saying that, however, the state started moving to send resources to other states — Florida and Georgia — that will be harder hit.

Irma made landfall over the Florida Keys as a Category 4 storm Sunday morning. The hurricane should move north-northwest along the Florida peninsula throughout the day Sunday. By Monday evening, the storm should be over western Georgia and continue to move west, decaying by Wednesday and dissipating completely by Friday.

However, forecasters warn tropical storm force winds could extend 190 miles away from the storm’s center, and are expected to extend as far as 270 miles as the storm moves inland from Florida to Georgia, impacting South Carolina.

“You have a great chance of people getting hurt,” McMaster said. “Nature is powerful.”

Storm surges are expected from Charleston County south from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Monday, potentially damaging roads and property and causing beach erosion.

Rainfall of 3 to 6 inches in some parts of the state could create the possibility of flash floods, said National Weather Service meteorologist John Quagliariello. Tornadoes are also a possibility, he said.

McMaster said he spoke with President Donald Trump earlier Sunday. The president assured McMaster that he “will do anything ... needed” in terms of federal disaster assistance, the governor said.

More than 500 National Guardsmen and 89 State Guardsmen have been called up to deal with any challenges Irma causes, assisting state troopers and other law enforcement agents. Some are patrolling barrier islands that are under an evacuation order to protect vacated homes.

“There will be no tolerance for folks trying to take advantage of those areas that have been evacuated,” SLED Chief Mark Keel said.

Adjutant General Robert Livingston said 650 Guard members, including an infantry battalion and a transportation company, will be deployed to Georgia and Florida to deal with expected storm damage there.

Some S.C.-based utility crews also will be dispatched to help get power back on in those states.

Eleven shelters were open statewide Sunday at mid-day. Another 12 more were scheduled to open later Sunday, mostly in Williamsburg and Clarendon counties, creating the capacity to house 13,000 evacuees. Only about 250 people were staying in the state’s shelters at mid-day Sunday.

“So we have plenty of room,” McMaster said, “including for our friends coming from Georgia and Florida.”

Statewide, traffic returned to normal Sunday, after days of jammed interstates as Floridians and Georgians drove north, trying to escape Irma, Transportation Department chief Christy Hall said.

“Traffic levels have returned to pre-storm conditions, if not lower,” Hall said. “The only exception is I-20, coming in from Augusta,” where Georgia motorists continued to flee Irma Sunday.

Once Irma passes, S.C. drivers should expect to see jammed interstates again as Floridians and Georgians head back home. State officials said Sunday they had no plans to reverse lanes on any roadways, except possibly in Beaufort County. Even that, is not likely, McMaster said.

Attorney General Alan Wilson said his office has received 250 complaints of price-gouging since the start of the state of emergency declared Wednesday. Eighty-five percent of those involve rising fuel prices, Wilson said. The complaints will be investigated once the storm has passed, he added.

This story was originally published September 10, 2017 at 4:26 PM with the headline "Irma still expected to ‘hit us hard’."