While the majority of Hunting Island reopened over the weekend after a four-day closure due to Tropical Storm Debby’s drenching rains, the state park’s campground was set to reopen days later.
Based on the barrier island’s history of flooding and erosion issues, state park officials closed Hunting Island on Aug. 6 in response to predicted heavy rains and the potential for high winds from Debby. While all day-use areas of the park reopened Saturday, officials said they plan to reopen the campground Thursday.
That makes a nine-day closure for campers who were looking forward to their early-August getaway at the famed 5,000-acre island, lush with Lowcountry flora and fauna. The popular campground averages about 89% capacity and brings in 40% of the park’s revenue, according to a 2022 county report .
Due to flooding from the tropical storm, park staff are continuing to pump out excess water, open clogged ditches and clean up damaged campsites, said Sam Queen, a spokesperson for the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism. Teams will also be testing all electrical and water hookups on the campsites.
Queen added that the drain ditches did “exactly what they were supposed to do” when handling the excess of water, “they just require some post storm clean up.”
Campsite reservations have been refunded or transferred through Wednesday, Queen said.
“I would personally rather refund their money and have them return at a later date than for them to face a safety issue while they’re here,” the park manager told The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette on Aug. 5.
How much rain did Hunting Island get?
In a five-day period, Tropical Storm Debby showered Beaufort County with rainfall totals between 6.76 and 15.12 inches, according to 26 gauges spread across the area that are monitored by the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network . The network is a national nonprofit that collects local rainfall data and submits it to the National Weather Service.
A rain gauge on Hunting Island measured 9.3 total inches of precipitation, with collection starting Aug. 4 and continuing through Aug. 8.
The last time a historic amount of rain fell in the Lowcountry, dumping 15 to 20 inches between Oct. 1 and 5 in 2015, state parks officials said Hunting Island was the hardest-hit park statewide, despite avoiding a direct strike, according to reporting by The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette in 2015 .
Recently, when Idalia hit Beaufort County on Aug. 30, 2023 , as a tropical storm, the park’s campground lost between 2 and 3 feet of sand dunes, a small section of the north beach’s dunes eroded up to 6 feet, and 5 to 7 feet were eaten away at the south beach.
Most Popular
Comments / 0