Helene destroyed 53 homes in Greenville, but emergency calls trend down, officials say

As 37 percent of Greenville County residents continue to wait for their power to return, others are returning to a sense of normalcy, officials said Thursday afternoon.

“We're working with hundreds of people out in the field that are doing search and rescue and damage assessment,” County Council Chairman Dan Tripp said. “While we are getting back to normalcy…we still have a lot of people that are going through tough times, so we understand that we're working hard every day just to make sure that we can get power back onto the vehicle and get their property damages made whole.”

Jessica Stumpf, the director of Greenville County Emergency Management, said so far, the storm has destroyed 53 structures, 642 structures have major damage, and 1,297 have minor damage.

She said meals ready to eat (MREs) and water are available at 35 E. Atrim Drive, and two new locations will open Friday at 1030 Bates Crossing Road in Travelers Rest and 1810 Fairview Road in Fountain Inn.

Stumpf also encouraged residents to apply for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) assistance at www.disasterrelief.gov . She reiterated that the county has set up a general population shelter at Hillcrest High School, which is serving 32 people, and a medical shelter at Bon Secours Wellness Arena, which is serving 22 people.

Dr. Tom Blackwell, the director of Greenville County Emergency Medical Services, said emergency calls are starting to decrease. The county has 24 more hours of assistance from Dorchester and Charleston counties.

Since the storm hit on Friday, Greenville County EMS has responded to 2,200 calls and transported 1,200 patients, Blackwell said. About 200 came from car accidents, more than 230 came from falls, and roughly 50 were traumatic injuries. Two of those injuries involved chainsaws.

Blackwell urged residents not to use equipment they don’t have experience with and to be vigilant about generator use to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.

Sheriff Hobart Lewis said calls for service Wednesday night and today have been about on par with the average number of calls the office receives. He also said some of Greenville and Oconee County personnel have traveled to Lake Lure and Chimney Rock in North Carolina to assist with recovery. The teams will also travel to Buncombe and Rutherford counties.

“They are heading up there to help our neighbors, so certainly keep them in your prayers. They were devastated by this storm as well,” Lewis said.

Assistant County Administrator for Engineering & Public Works Hesha Gamble updated residents on road closures and said county workers would give updates on detours. Gamble also said that debris collection will begin next week.

In order to have county employees pick up your debris , place it in the right-of-way, or land on the shoulder and beyond, on any county-maintained road. Do not include household trash bags. Do not place debris near mailboxes, fire hydrants, power poles, meters or cars.

Gamble also said the county has three temporary debris collection sites. Greenville County residents can take debris to the following sites with a valid ID.

Debris can be taken at

• Enoree: 1311 Anderson Ridge Road, Greer 29651
• Blackberry Valley: 409 Blackberry Valley Road, Greenville 29617
• Simpsonville: 517 Hipps Road, Simpsonville 29680

Contractors and dump trailers are not allowed.

Residents can also use the countywide Twin Chimneys landfill, but there are size limits for limbs. Limbs can be six feet long and six inches wide. Dump trailers, contractors and non-residents can bring debris to Twin Chimneys, but they will be charged, whereas residents will not.

Tripp said county staff prepared for the storm as best they could, but it was bigger than they could have expected.

“We were well prepared for this storm. When you have Mother Nature – or as my mother says, God – causes what happens to happen, and 97% of the people lost power…you know, that's not something you can prepare for,” Tripp said. “We've got a lot of older trees, and that combined with the power lines just wreaked havoc.”

Tripp said all things considered, county workers responded as well as they could.

Sarah Swetlik covers business, growth and development for The Greenville News. Previously, she covered environmental issues and climate change. You can reach her at sswetlik@gannett.com or via X at @sarahgswetlik .

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Helene destroyed 53 homes in Greenville, but emergency calls trend down, officials say