Chesterfield Co. prepares for Hurricane Michael

CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, SC (FOX 46 WJZY) – Neighbors and emergency management in Chesterfield County are preparing for Hurricane Michael, and still cleaning up from Hurricane Florence. The storm is expected to drop 3-5 inches of rain on the area as of Tuesday night. 

Chesterfield County Emergency Management tells Fox46 Charlotte they are not expecting to see as much rain that fell during Hurricane Florence, but they are worried about low-lying areas and already saturated tree roots. 

“There was a lot of areas that had standing water for many days; that water is just under the ground,” said Chad Arant, Chesterfield County Emergency Management Assistant Director.  “It won’t take very much water falling from the sky to be puddles.” 

After Hurricane Florence dropped a downpour of rain on the area, 900 people reported storm damage. FEMA opened a Disaster Recovery Center at Northeastern Technical College that will remain open as Hurricane Michael now heads in their direction. 

“People have been through a lot however they are weary so we are here to give them support,” said FEMA Disaster Recovery Manager Al Ebler. “They have had a lot of flood damage and that’s now turning into mold.” 

FEMA inspectors are still documenting the damage from Hurricane Florence and helping neighbors get repair money. Mary Jordan is one of those neighbors who still has water puddling in her backyard:

“There were a lot of branches and trees down, of course the river was up a lot,” said Jordan. 

And in the rush before the next storm, Chesterfield County Emergency Management says a new generator came in at the right time. They are planning a conference call with South Carolina state emergency management Wednesday at noon to asses if crews need to be called in.

“Hopefully it’s one of those things to be prepared and not have to use it,” said Arant.