New cameras, rules at Horry County boat ramps

Horry County’s boat ramps have some changes in store for the coming boating season, which include video surveillance cameras at some sites and a new rule about swimming near floating docks and ramps.

Six new surveillance cameras were installed at Horry County boat landings at the start of this year. County officials worked on the surveillance camera project for most of 2014.

Plans originally called for installing the cameras at six of the county’s 28 boat landings, including Peachtree Landing, where a missing Socastee woman — Heather Elvis — was last seen in December 2013. State grants worth $57,000 were earmarked for placing the cameras at Chris Anderson Landing, Red Bluff Landing, S.C. 22/U.S. 17 Interchange Landing, Reaves Ferry Landing, Enterprise Landing and, of course, Peachtree.

It took longer than expected to get the cameras up.

A year ago, the county signed a contract with WildFire for a wireless camera system and the company was paid to install it.

By September, the county council’s public safety committee learned the project was “way behind.”

The county then contracted with Tyco, which already services surveillance cameras at the county’s main government complex in Conway, the M.L. Brown Public Safety Building and some recreation centers.

At the request of the S.C. Department of Natural Resources in 2014, Horry County’s public safety committee began looking at regulating swimming, jet skiing, hunting and fishing at public boat landings. A DNR official said in July swimmers near the ramps and those on floats are starting to grow in numbers, specifically at five landings: Punch Bowl, Pitts, Red Bluff, Hughes and Reaves Ferry.

Brent Taylor, Horry County’s director of parks and recreation, said signs will be up at the boat landings that restrict swimming near boat landings and floating docks — some allow a distance of a few feet and some restrict swimming from 50 feet away.

Taylor also said the county parks department hopes to rehabilitate the Rosewood Boat Ramp, which is east of Dick Pond Road near Socastee High School, some time this summer. Improvements are also planned for the Bucksville Boat Ramp, between S.C. 544 and S.C. 701, and Lee’s Landing, which is east of U.S. 501 and the Red Hill community.

Taylor also offered tips for boaters:

•  Boaters need to be watchful of their wakes, especially around piers and docks.

“Enterprise [Boat Ramp], in particular, takes a beating,” Taylor said. “People go through there pretty fast. There and the new one at S.C. 22 and U.S. 17.”

•  Be helpful to the county with trash.

“We prefer if you bring it, take it with you,” Taylor said.

•  Know when to yield. Taylor said, as a reminder, he’d like fishers to know they must yield to boaters when it comes time for boaters to get on the ramp.

•  Know the county’s 72-hour rule.

“Make sure if you’re going be there for an extended period of time, it would be nice for us to know that,” Taylor said, adding the county will tow vehicles that are parked at a boat landing for more than 72 hours.

•  Be aware of blocking. Taylor said the more boaters who are aware of time will prevent them from taking too long to load and unload.

This story was originally published May 25, 2015 at 10:29 AM with the headline "New cameras, rules at Horry County boat ramps."