‘I don’t want to drown’: Bucksport residents prepare for Waccamaw River crest

HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — After massive amounts of rain from Tropical Storm Debby flooded rivers and creeks, big bodies of water are now making their way downstream into the Waccamaw River.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasts that by Sunday evening, the water from the river will crest at 14.7 feet, which is higher than the 14-foot major flood stage.

67-year resident Pearl Davis said that she’s never seen flooding on the roads in Bucksport last week as bad as they were, even compared to Hurricane Florence and Hurricane Matthew.

Matthew said that her and her family has already started to pack their bags as concerns over water continuing to rise increases. She said her family plans to drive to a motel outside of Bucksport for four to five days if water does make its way up to her home on Salem Church Road.

Matthew said luckily, on her road particularly, that water damage from Debby didn’t hit as badly as others down the street. She hopes with the expected crest on Sunday that it will be the same.

“For the last couple of floods, I’ve never seen it this bad,” she said. “I can’t swim. I don’t want to drown, and I’ve been praying for everyone that has impact, that everybody . . . [doesn’t] lose their life or something like that, you know? Everybody’s safe and sound. You can get another house, you can’t get another person.”

Estelle Robinson, a longtime resident of of Bucksport now living off of Highway 701, said that she’s concerned for her family that still lives on Martin Luther Drive.

She said her family’s home always floods and is tired of constantly having to keep moving in and out as water comes and goes. Even with their house raised, she said that her family still has to find shelter elsewhere as water makes its way in.

“I mean, it really bring tears to your eyes to see how bad it could get here in Bucksport,” Robinson said.

Though optimistic that the expected water won’t be as bad as it’s said to be, she said there is no way of knowing until it hits and is praying for the safety of everyone in the community.

“The Lord always provides and he makes a way that they will be able to find somewhere to go,” Robinson said. “If I was anybody in the Bucksport community and what is being said, I would start trying to find a place, be ready, be prepared to just move on out because life is more important than to stay here.”

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Gabby Jonas joined the News13 team as a multimedia journalist in April 2024. She is from Columbus, Ohio, and graduated from Kent State University in May 2023. Follow Gabby on X, formerly Twitter , Facebook or Instagram , and read more of her work here .

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