Flooding closes multiple thoroughfares in Dorchester County

DORCHESTER COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – Dorchester County officials say all major thoroughfares west of Summerville are closed because of flooding.

The flooding on Friday comes as heavy rain associated with Tropical Storm Debby fell overnight, on top of water left behind when the storm moved along the South Carolina coast.

Wire Road, US Highway 78, I-26 eastbound, Highway 27, portions of Highway 15 south in Dorchester County, and E Main Street in Harleyville are impacted.

“All roads over the Four Hole Swamp are flooded and closed including (but not limited to) US-78 outside of Summerville, SC-27, portions of US-15 S, Wire Road, and I-26 eastbound are NOT usable and need to be clear for emergency access,” said Michelle Mills, public information officer for the county.

More than 75 roads were either partially or completely closed within the county as of mid-morning on Friday, according to local officials. The county is updating a list of impacted roads online.

“At this point, the water is still rising so we’re monitoring a number of river and stream gauges. Right now the trend is that the water is continuing to rise so, unfortunately the road conditions that we have out there where we have water across the road are probably not going to improve anytime soon,” Mario Formisano, the Deputy County Administrator for Public Safety in Dorchester County, told News 2 Friday afternoon.

Wire Road at Zion Road and the 600 block of Powder Horn Road were washed away by flood water and are expected to be closed for some time.

“Do not attempt to drive through flood waters,” officials said in an Aug. 9 social media post. “Do not drive around barriers. Your safety is our primary concern.”

Residents are encouraged to avoid unnecessary travel as additional flooding and road closures may occur.

Flash flood warnings went out overnight. Officials said by the morning, they were handling an influx of water rescue mission calls.

“We responded with our water rescue teams and got those individuals out and some of those individuals required shelter, so we opened up a shelter at the former St. George Middle School,” Formisano said. “But then since then, as we’ve been out and the sun came up and we’re able to navigate the county, a lot of our water rescue teams are out doing welfare checks on the homes that are surrounded by water.”

To report flooding in your area contact the Dorchester County call center at 843-832-0393.

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