© 2024 South Carolina Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Stories of people and communities going about the work of recovery from the floods of 2015 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016.00000177-2120-db48-a97f-fb222fb50000In October of 2015, South Carolina received rainfall in unprecedented amounts over just a few days time. By the time the rain began to slacken, the National Weather Service reported that the event had dumped more than two feet of water on the state. The U.S. Geological Survey reported that the subsequent flooding was the worst in 75 years.Then, one year later, rain and storm surge from Hurricane Matthew dealt a blow to many in South Carolina still at work recovering from the 2015 floods.SC Public Radio Flood Coverage from the Beginning

Ballet School Reopens after Flood’s Devastation

On October 3, 2015, the Pavlovich Ballet School in Columbia was enjoying its newly-renovated facility, including state-of-the-art sound equipment and a new dance floor completed just two months earlier.  The next day owner Radenko Pavlovich watched eight feet of water send the piano floating through the studio, destroying it and everything else. On the first of April, the dance studio finally re-opened. Tut Underwood reports on its process of recovery.

The school was planning to perform two shows in the weeks after the flood hit. In fact, it was right before a rehearsal when the students found out about the flood damage.  Brianna Taylor, a second-year company member, says, "we were all here... it was awful. It was up to the top with water. We all came... just helping get everything out and saving as much as we could."  The dance company had to cancel both of its shows that month.

 
Later that week, Pavlovich began feeling pains in his chest.  The mother of one of his students was a cardiologist, and said to him, "You've gotta go to the hospital now, or you're gonna die." Doctors later said that if he had waited any longer, he may not have made it.  Pavlovich attributes the heart attack to the stress of the flood.

 
When it came to recovery, he hoped his flood insurance would pay off. Pavlovich had to hire a consultant to help the studio through the process with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and insurance.  There were problems though, when agencies said they only saw 50 percent damage rather than 100 percent.  Eventually, Pavlovich did get about 60 percent of what he needed to start rebuilding. The rest, he paid out of pocket.

 
There was no chance Pavlovich would have let the company die with the flood. It's been open for 20 years, and he would fight to get it re-opened. "I'm a fighter... if somebody say to me, 'you can't do that,' that's really when I want to go after it even more," he said.

 
As money came in, Pavlovich was able to start clearing out and renovating the studio once again. He says his students were a huge help throughout the recovery. "I really was amazed," he said, "even with the bars that needed to be repainted, everybody chipped in. It showed dedication and love, that they really believe in Columbia Classical Ballet and Pavlovich Ballet School."  Today, he says the school is 100 percent back with new top-of-the-line sound systems and equipment.

 
Brianna Taylor, for one, is happy to see the studio back in action. She says, "we're all a big family and this is our home.  When we saw that the flood had happened, it was a devastating thing for all of us. But he rebuilt this and he made it our home again."

 
 
Additional Links
 
Pavlovich Ballet School

Columbia Classical Ballet Company

Biography of Radenko Pavlovich

Tut Underwood is producer of South Carolina Focus, a weekly news feature. A native of Alabama, Tut graduated from Auburn University with a BA in Speech Communication. He worked in radio in his hometown before moving to Columbia where he received a Master of Mass Communications degree from the University of South Carolina, and worked for local radio while pursuing his degree. He also worked in television. He was employed as a public information specialist for USC, and became Director of Public Information and Marketing for the South Carolina State Museum. His hobbies include reading, listening to music in a variety of styles and collecting movies and old time radio programs.