Heavy rain flooded Columbia in 2015. Here’s how the city is preparing for another big storm

As Tropical Storm Debby approaches South Carolina, Columbia leaders are thinking back to 2015, when historic rainfall killed seven people in the city, took out roads and bridges and carved a 60-foot hole in the Columbia Canal responsible for providing water to 200,000 people.

Often called a “1,000-year-storm” for its magnitude and rarity, the 2015 event dropped 20 inches of rain on the Midlands. Debby is expected to drop half that amount — up to 10 inches of rain are expected in Columbia over the next several days.

Columbia leaders at a press briefing Monday said they learned from the 2015 event and assured residents they would be prepared for a worst-case scenario, while hoping for the best.

“This time, we’re a little more prepared,” said Columbia Mayor Daniel Rickenmann, explaining that the city and its partners like Dominion Energy have been preparing for the last week to make sure systems are in place to respond to emergencies and to maintain electricity and other services as best as possible.

At the same time, Rickenmann urged residents to make their own preparations by stocking flashlights and batteries, pet food and other necessities in case power outages occur. City leaders urged particular caution around travel, stressing that once the storms begin flooding is almost certain and people should avoid being on the roads except for emergencies.

Columbia Canal

One of the biggest impacts from the 2015 flood was the breach of the Columbia Canal, which still has not been repaired nine years later. But the city has several contingencies if the canal were to flood again.

“Many, many things are different,” from when the 2015 flood rocked the Midlands, Columbia Assistant City Manager Clint Shealy said.

The city constructed a temporary rock dam in response to the breach, and that dam has held since. Shealy said that dam and other measures in place at the canal have given the city more control to release water if the levels get too high.

When the canal failed in 2015, the city very nearly lost its water supply for at least half of the 400,000 customers that rely on Columbia Water. Stopgaps implemented by the city prevented that scenario.

Shealy added that one factor that is concerning about Debby is the uncertainty of its path, making it difficult to know how much rain will fall and when. Still, he said he is confident in the measures in place at the canal to respond to heavy flooding if it occurs.

“We’re going to continue providing high quality drinking water in the quantities that are needed to provide fire protection and provide good, clean drinking water for our customers,” Shealy said.

Safety concerns

City officials Monday also urged residents to be safe around standing water, downed power lines and other possible threats from heavy rainfall and strong winds.

The city has a list of flood-prone areas, and is setting up barricades at those locations to prevent people from driving through standing water. If residents see standing water in a roadway that is not barricaded, they should still avoid the area and turn around, Police Chief Skip Holbrook said.

“When we’re doing a water rescue or having to deal with disabled vehicles, it’s taking us away from, oftentimes, life saving measures that may be necessary somewhere else,” Holbrook said.

Storms can also lead to power outages that affect traffic lights. If drivers encounter traffic lights that aren’t working, they should treat them as a four-way stop.

Heavy rain can also loosen soil and lead to downed trees, which in turn can take out power lines. Officials urge residents to avoid downed power lines and downed branches, and to report those to Dominion Energy and to the city. The city’s non-emergency number for making those reports is 803-545-3300.

This story was originally published August 5, 2024 at 4:43 PM.

Morgan Hughes

The State

(803) 771-8330

Morgan Hughes covers Columbia news for The State. She previously reported on health, education and local governments in Wyoming. She has won awards in Wyoming and Wisconsin for feature writing and investigative journalism. Her work has also been recognized by the South Carolina Press Association.