State of emergency issued in SC ahead of Hurricane Idalia’s impact
S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster has issued a cautionary state of emergency ahead of Hurricane Idalia’s expected arrival in the state, the governor announced Tuesday afternoon.
No evacuations are currently planned in the state, McMaster said.
Idalia is expected to be a tropical storm, or further weakened to a tropical depression, by the time it reaches South Carolina on Wednesday, National Weather Service forecasters said Tuesday.
“We can expect high winds, heavy rains, flash flooding, flooding due to storm surge and even possibly tornadoes,” McMaster said.
McMaster said he does not anticipate issuing any evacuation orders or closing state agencies or facilities.
“I don’t think it’s going to be necessary to do that,” McMaster said.
The state of emergency allows state agencies to move quickly to respond to any situations that occur during the storm. The state’s emergency operations center will be activated at 8 a.m. Wednesday, McMaster said.
McMaster said electric companies have begun to position personnel to respond to power outages.
The storm was gaining strength as a Category 1 hurricane as of midday Tuesday and is expected to to hit Florida as a Category 3 by Wednesday morning.
The center of Idalia is expected to move over the South Carolina coast on Wednesday and Thursday, forecasters say.
A tropical storm warning is in effect for the Lowcountry, including the Hilton Head Island and Charleston areas.
It’s a “pretty much sure bet” that the Lowcountry will get tropical storm-force winds and gusts, with the greatest likelihood blowing in Wednesday afternoon, forecasters said Tuesday. Storm surge is expected to swell between 2 and 4 feet above normally dry ground. Three feet of storm surge is considered life-threatening. Rainfall in the Lowcountry could total between 4 and 8 inches, with isolated higher amounts, with Wednesday night dropping the most.
The Myrtle Beach area is expecting up to 5 inches of rain, mostly falling Wednesday night, with tropical storm conditions lingering into Thursday.
A tropical storm watch is in effect for the Myrtle Beach area as well as parts of the Midlands — including eastern Orangeburg County as well as Clarendon and Bamberg counties, the National Weather Service said.
A flood watch was issued Tuesday afternoon for the Columbia area in preparation for Idalia. The watch goes into effect Wednesday afternoon and will run through Thursday afternoon and covers almost all of the Midlands, according to the National Weather Service.
The Midlands area is forecast to see between 3 and 6 inches of rain fall from Wednesday afternoon to Thursday morning, with a threat of possible flooding. Powerful wind gusts as well as tornadoes are also possible.
This story was originally published August 29, 2023 at 3:04 PM.
