Hurricane Isaias: Cat 1 storm results in flooding, damage in the Myrtle Beach area
Several Horry County communities battled severe flooding and havoc as Hurricane Isaias passed through the Grand Strand late Monday night.
With the Category 1 storm passing over the area during high tide, significant storm surge mixed with the heavy rain dumped in the area resulted in flooded roads in North Myrtle Beach, Garden City, Surfside Beach and Myrtle Beach, with the worst of it seen in Cherry Grove.
It was estimated that Cherry Grove was under at least four-feet of water at some point during the evening high tide, which was compounded by storm surge, according to North Myrtle Beach Spokesperson Pat Dowling. He added that the tide went out slowly but left some streets flooded, as of about 1 a.m.
North Myrtle Beach Fire Rescue responded to about a half dozen residential fires Monday night, Dowling said. One had significant damage, one had moderate damage and the others had the fires quickly extinguished.
In other parts of North Myrtle Beach, rescuers helped people from their homes as the water rose. North Myrtle Beach Fire Rescue said storm surge was 4 to 5 feet. A wind gust of 55 mph was recorded around 9:45 p.m.
Public safety officials also performed many high-water vehicle rescues, primarily involving people who became afraid of rising flood waters in Cherry Grove and other sections of the city, Dowling said.
Rescues were performed in other parts of the Myrtle Beach area. Horry County Fire Rescue dispatched crews around 8:30 p.m. “to a sinking vehicle ... in flood water” in Carolina Forest. The driver was able to escape with no injuries reported, officials said on Twitter.
With several roads in the North Myrtle Beach area nearly impassable Monday night, a Sun News photographer on Tuesday morning said with the exception of some standing water on few streets, flooding has since receded in North Myrtle Beach. Though, debris can still be found on the roadways and Hog Inlet, with some homes experiencing minimal damage from the high winds.
Dune damage was also notable with portions of it washing away in the storm along the beach at 59th Avenue North in North Myrtle Beach.
However, the most severe storm damage could be seen in Cherry Grove with Sea Cabins Pier missing a section of the pier. The Apache Pier near North Myrtle Beach also suffered wind damage as the storm moved into the area.
North Myrtle Beach officials are currently ask people to avoid swimming or surfing north of the Cherry Grove Pier due to debris from Sea Cabins Pier found in the water and along the beach. At low tide, city crews will determine if debris remain in the water between both areas, officials said.
Over in Surfside Beach, flooding was a couple of feet deep with some beach erosion. Myrtle Beach also saw some flooding on roads, including sections of Ocean Boulevard.
With the storm bringing rain and strong winds to Horry County on Monday night, a few hundred people are still without power. Here is the latest on power outages:
- Santee Cooper - There are about 22 people without power as of 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.
- Horry Electric - There are about 352 people without power as of 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.
This story was originally published August 4, 2020 at 7:51 AM.
