City of Charleston Urges Motorists to Prepare for Major Flooding Thursday into the Weekend

Press Release

Major tidal flooding is anticipated in low lying areas of the city during morning high tides Thursday through Saturday this week. With that in mind, City of Charleston Emergency Management officials urge motorists to use caution when driving on the roadways, allow extra time for commuting and use alternate routes to avoid areas of known flooding.

While the forecast is subject to change, National Weather Service Charleston is currently predicting the following high tides:

• Thursday, 7:58 am – approximately 8.1 feet
• Friday, 8:48 am – approximately 8.4 feet
• Saturday, 9:40 am – approximately 8.8 feet

At this time, the Sunday and Monday morning high tides, as well as each evening high tide through the weekend, are projected to result in minor to moderate flooding. Currently, rain chances on Thursday and Friday are low.

In preparation for the high tides and likelihood of flooding, city departments are coordinating with the National Weather Service, mobilizing personnel and equipment, preparing to manage road closures and re-openings, checking flood mitigation devices, erecting mobile signage as a reminder to motorists to avoid flooded roadways and preparing for any necessary post-event clean-up.

City of Charleston Emergency Management Director Shannon Scaff said, “With high tides of this magnitude, it’s critically important for motorists to use extreme caution when traveling in areas of known flooding. As always, public safety is our top priority, so city crews will continue working to prepare for the expected flooding and respond by closing any roadways that become impassable. In the meantime, make a plan for your morning commute, leave yourself extra driving time and remember to ‘turn around, don’t drown.’”

Road closures will be updated throughout each event on the city’s road closure map, which can be viewed here: http://gis.charleston-sc.gov/road-closures.

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