Team South Carolina Continues Response Efforts

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Team South Carolina continues to work around the clock to respond as the state transitions into recovery. Power and gas restoration, road clearing, emergency alerting, and sheltering operations remain top priorities for the State Emergency Response Team. South Carolina's state agencies and local partners report the following as of 11:00 a.m. today:

• The South Carolina Emergency Management Division remains at OPCON 1 and has responded to 275 logistical requests. The requests range from shelter assistance to debris removal.
• Thousands of line workers are working around the clock to make power repairs. As of 11:00 am on 9/29, 900,000 outages were reported.
• The South Carolina Department of Transportation has more than 2,300 employees working 24/7 to recover from the storm, clearing debris from the roadways and repairing traffic signals as power is restored.
• 6 general population shelters are currently in operation. View shelter information here.
• Decisions to open shelters are made at the local level.
• The South Carolina Department of Public Health (DPH) has been in contact with 168 health care facilities to check on their power/electricity status and assist with any needs.
• DPH Care Line has received a total of 91 calls.
• The South Carolina National Guard has approximately 400 service members on state active duty. Support to counties has included SCHART missions, Aviation support for damage assessment, debris clearing, water pallet delivery, damage assessment (ground), vehicle recovery, general purpose troops for support, and security (non-armed) general purpose troops. Soldiers have completed missions in Lexington, Columbia, Oconee, Anderson, Greenville, Richland, Edgefield, Saluda, York, Pickens, Cherokee, McCormick, Aiken, Spartanburg, Laurens, and Greenwood counties.
• Road safety remains a priority, South Carolina Department of Public Safety Highway Patrol Troopers and State Transport Police Officers have responded to 3,854 incidents. 
• S.C. Commerce is utilizing private-public partnerships to assist counties with business unmet needs like working to get grocery stores, pharmacies, and banks/ATMs open at some level. Any businesses with any questions or unmet needs can email esf24@emd.sc.gov for assistance.
• The South Carolina Department of Agriculture is working to contact thousands of farms, food and feed manufacturers, and retail food establishments to assess the impact of the storm and provide guidance on food safety measures.
• Clemson Livestock-Poultry Health is providing outreach to all South Carolina livestock, poultry, and meat processing stakeholders.  There are reports of disruption to multiple poultry operations and meat processing facilities due to power outages in the Upstate, Midlands, and Low Country regions.  Anticipate loss of product due to disruption in business. Clemson Department of Plant Industry field inspectors are patrolling the Asian Long-horned Beetle quarantine zone, while the Clemson Department of Pesticide Regulation is monitoring agricultural pesticide stockpiles and fielding questions on how flooding can impact termite treatments

Residents in South Carolina who have questions about Hurricane Helene can now call the state’s toll-free hotline. Operators with the State’s Public Information Phone System are available 24 hours a day for as long as needed.

Hurricane Helene Hotline: 1-866-246-0133.

Residents can also use the Damage Assessment tool in the SC Emergency Manager app to report property damage to authorities. Download the app on the App Store and on Google Play: http://onelink.to/dn92rx.