South Carolina flood: Door-to-door searches, swamped roads

AP, Columbia :Days of torrential rains kept much of South Carolina and its capital gripped by floodwaters early Monday as emergency responders promised renewed door-to-door searches for anyone still trapped after a weekend deluge and hundreds of rescues.At least seven weather-related deaths have been blamed on the vast rainstorm.Heavy rain kept falling into the early hours Monday around the Carolinas from the storm that began swamping the Southeast late last week, part of an unprecedented low pressure system that dumped more than 18 inches on one spot alone in Columbia, the South Carolina capital.The rainstorm dumped so much water on South Carolina and parts of several surrounding states that even the weather experts said they were astonished.”The flooding is unprecedented and historical,” said Dr. Marshall Shepherd, a meteorologist and director of the atmospheric sciences program at the University of Georgia, in an email to The Associated Press.He said the unique double punch of the upper level low – aided by a “river” of tropical moisture in the atmosphere from Hurricane Joaquin spinning far out in the Atlantic – gave the monster rainstorm its punch.The deluge made for otherworldly scenes in the state capital of Columbia as floodwaters nearly touched the stoplights Sunday at one downtown intersection. Rainwater cascaded like a waterfall over jagged asphalt where a road sheered apart and many cars were submerged under flooded streets.The flooding forced hundreds of weekend rescues and threatened the drinking water supply for hundreds of thousands in Columbia, with officials there warning some could be without potable water for days because of water main breaks. Electrical outages affecting thousands also were reported. Elsewhere, nearly 75 miles of Interstate 95 – the main link from the Southeast U.S. to the Northeast – had to be closed for a time.Officials counted several hundred water rescues at one point Sunday. But Columbia Fire Chief Aubry Jenkins said in an interview that there were quickly too many rescues to even tally. Among those rescued were a woman and baby lifted to safety by helicopter.Police in the flooded South Carolina capital of Columbia say they and other emergency crews would continue with “concentrated search and rescue operations” early Monday.Columbia Police Chief William Holbrook issued a statement saying the operations would check for any people in the city and nearby Richland County still needing evacuation from flooded areas. He urged anyone still needing help to call 911, saying they would be taken out on military vehicles and bused to shelters.”The operation will also include overall welfare checks,” he said, adding crews will mark the front doors of homes checked with a fluorescent orange X once searched.After a nightmarish weekend marked by scenes of swift-water rescues, bridge washouts and small dams giving way, reality was setting in Monday as people waited and hoped for the rains to ease. Some reports indicate the sun could peek out Tuesday. Many recovery tasks lay ahead.Several schools and colleges, including the University of South Carolina, canceled classes Monday and some businesses planned to stay shuttered.Numerous roads and bridges around the state were washed out or under water. All will have to be checked to see if they are structurally sound or repaired.