Not only were police in the Columbia suburb of Forest Acres helping the public with traffic detours and inundated autos and businesses after the historic flood of Oct. 4, 2015, they were dealing with their own flooded headquarters. In this story, we talk with Police Chief Gene Sealy and City Manager Mark Williams about the city’s hopes to move the police station, which was contaminated with sewage as part of the storm, to a new location out of the flood plain. Just some of the considerations include finding funding and land to build on. The flooded station has been repaired, the men say, but it’s still a struggle with office and storage space in short supply.
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
Forest Acres Police Department Considers New Police Station in the Wake of October’s Flood
Tut Underwood/SC Public Radio
