Water Rescues Reported, Thousands Without Power as Rain Causes Flooding from South Carolina to Virginia; Charleston Hit Hard

Eric Chaney
Published: April 24,2017
Heavy rains forced water rescues, knocked out power to thousands and triggered significant flooding of multiple streets from South Carolina to southern Virginia.
Despite a recent drought in the region, flash flooding will remain a concern in as a low-pressure system slowly tracks up the East Coast.
The heavy rains forced several caskets aboveground at a cemetery in Georgetown County, South Carolina, WCSC-TV reported. The Georgetown County government has moved to Operating Condition 4 Monday, indicating that they are on alert for a possible threat as heavy rain continues to hammer the area, and a local middle school has been opened as a shelter.
In Hawkins County, Tennessee, multiple people were rescued Monday after a van got stuck floodwaters and was nearly carried away by the Holston River, according to the Associated Press. Hawkins County Emergency Management Director Gary Murrell told the AP there were no injuries and all were rescued successfully.
First responders worked to free several people trapped inside of a vehicle in high water in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, Monday morning, WCBD-TV said.
Charleston police closed numerous roads downtown due to high water.

Rescuers found the driver of this truck on top of the vehicle when they arrived Monday morning in Wilkes County, North Carolina. Heavy rain is causing flooding in the Carolinas and Virginia.
(WXII/Bethany Moore)

Another water rescue took place in northwestern North Carolina where a man had to be retrieved from the top of his pickup truck, which was sitting with water rushing over the bed and hood and up to the side windows, WXII-TV reported.
In neighboring Yadkin County, fire department officials found a car almost completely submerged in water in an area near the Yadkin River, WXII reports. Emergency responders confirmed no one was inside the car and that it had likely been there since earlier in the night.
(MORE: Flood Threat Continues in the Carolinas, Virginia as East Coast System Moves North)

Officials in Andrews, South Carolina, told the National Weather Service that buildings are already starting to flood, and Columbia city officials told the State that heavy rainfall caused sewer overflows in the city.
The NWS has also received numerous reports of mudslides, water entering homes, and water completely covering local roads in Virginia.
The heavy rains have also brought scattered power outages to the region. According to the AP, Duke Energy reported more than 2,500 customers without electricity in South Carolina, Monday morning, and more than 59,000 in North Carolina.
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