’We’re excited’: Residents in Garden City seem unafraid of Hurricane Dorian’s wrath
The life-threatening dangers that accompany a Category 2 hurricane didn’t deter many in Garden City Beach on Wednesday.
As the Carolinas brace for Hurricane Dorian’s wrath, several people spent their afternoon near the Garden City Pier walking the beach, playing in the ocean, surfing the rough waters, and watching the large waves.
“We’re excited,” Myrtle Beach area resident Jennifer Johnson said as her daughter’s dog ran along the shore. “It’s nice to get away from the humdrum of everyday life and see the power of the ocean.”
While Johnson said she previously evacuated north during the last three hurricanes that slammed the Grand Strand, she said she’s not worried about Dorian and chose to stay home.
With the storm currently east of Jacksonville, Florida, according to the National Hurricane Center, Dorian is expected to graze the South Carolina coastline with an 80 to 90 percent chance of tropical storm force winds and life-threatening storm surge. Large sections of Murrells Inlet, Pawleys Island and Georgetown could be inundated with up to seven feet of above-ground flooding through early Saturday evening, according to the National Weather Service.
While evacuation orders were issued by Gov. Henry McMaster for those living in Zone A in Horry and Georgetown counties earlier this week, Georgetown County residents living within immediate proximity to the waterfront are being advised to evacuate.
The National Weather Service contacted county officials Wednesday expressing serious concerns about the combination of storm surge from Hurricane Dorian and high tide at 3:27 p.m. Thursday, according to county spokeswoman Jackie Broach.
A combination of storm surge combined with high tide on Thursday could create potentially life-threatening flooding in Georgetown, specifically Front Street, the East Bay Area, Greenwich Street and Bay View, Broach said.
Despite the detrimental impacts the storm could cause, two Murrells Inlet residents said it’s more work returning to the area after an evacuation order is issued than it is preparing for the storm. Sammy Duff said he’d rather be indoors wrapping Christmas presents than dealing with an evacuation.
“It’s so hard to get back in if you leave, so we’re trying to listen to the weather and adjust if we need,” Duff said. “We’ve got food at the house, a back-up generator, and I don’t think it’s going to be that bad.”
E.W. Martin said he’s just hoping for the best.
“I’m not as worried as I was last year,” Martin said. “(Hurricane) Florence had me really scared and I think a lot of hype got built up and it wasn’t that bad, so I’m kind of hoping it’s like that again.”
Nearly a dozen surfers ranging from teens to older also took to the ocean while onlookers took photos and videos.
While many boasted how hurricanes create great waves, Kurt Wagner, of Hartsville, said the hurricane is what brought him and his surfboard to the coast for a short visit.
“I don’t want to let a good hurricane go to waste,” Wagner said. “That’s the only time the waves are big enough.”
This story was originally published September 4, 2019 at 3:57 PM.