Mortgage Broker in Goose Creek, SC

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. – Hurricane Idalia produced bands of storms across South Carolina’s Lowcountry on Wednesday, with at least one tornado north of Charleston causing damage.

First responders in Berkeley County reported only minor injuries when a car was apparently sideswiped by a quick twister.

A video showed tropical-storm-force winds in the region associated with the heavy rainfall when the tornado formed, lifting the vehicle and smashing it into another.

The tornado was one of several reports of waterspouts and funnel clouds in South Carolina but was the only incident where a touchdown happened as of Wednesday afternoon.

CHARLESTON SLAMMED WITH STORM SURGE AS IDALIA CONTINUES POUNDING SOUTHEAST

The National Weather Service office in Charleston will be tasked with surveying the damage and determining the rating of the twister on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.

Hurricane Idalia produced at least one other tornado in Florida, but there was not any widespread damage reported associated with the vortex.

Tornadoes often happen during hurricanes

Tropical cyclones are known to produce tornadoes, especially in the northeast quadrant of the storm.

According to the FOX Forecast Center, shear is typically the greatest in this sector as the storm interacts with other weather features and the land. The tornadoes are usually weak and short-lived, which appears to be what happened in the Lowcountry.

IDALIA DIGS INLAND AS TROPICAL STORM, IMMERSING SOUTHEAST IN FLOODWATERS FOLLOWING HISTORIC FLORIDA LANDFALL

The threat of tornadoes, flooding and gusty winds is expected to continue through Thursday morning for the Carolinas as the center of Idalia pushes eastward off the coast.

Florida and Georgia were the hardest hit states by the former Category 4 hurricane. During the peak of the event, more than half a million customers in the two states were without electricity.

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCSC) - In Berkeley County, the city of Goose Creek and the South Carolina Department of Transportation worked together to approve a stoplight at St. James Avenue and Myers Road.

The stoplight was approved almost a year and a half ago and residents in the area say they’ve almost lost hope that it will get completed.

Data from the South Carolina Department of Public Safety shows more than 150 crashes have occurred at the intersection over the past five years resulting in dozens of injuries.

A traffic analysis found the volume in that area was too high leading to the approval of the signal with construction scheduled to take up to 15 months. SCDOT says the design of the signal began when the project was approved in March of 2022 with a contract in place in August that same year.

Michelle Yusko has lived in Okatee Subdivision for 15 years, directly across from St. James Avenue and St. Myers intersection. Yusko says she lives in a family neighborhood that’s peaceful and quiet. She’s seen cars cut through her neighborhood to get onto St. James Avenue just to avoid the intersection.

“They’re cutting through the neighborhood, which is making it worse,” Yusko says, “They cut through our neighborhood, so they don’t have to go to the end of Myers Road and pull out of our neighborhood onto St. James Avenue.”

Yusko is in favor of a red light but says she is unsure if it’s going to get done or if progress has been made. Especially when she’s seen accidents happen right in front of her.

“It’s awful, it’s ridiculous, it’s horrendous,” Yusko says, “They’ve been promising us a red light forever and ever.”

Yusko says they’ve gotten no notice or update on when the light will officially be at the intersection.

“Never, I have to go ask other people, maybe the electric company, they keep telling me what they’re hearing and it’s just not happening,” Yusko says.

SCDOT says the traffic signal mast arms for this intersection have been designed and ordered. The next step is installation, and the official completion date is Dec. 31 of this year.

If you have a road concern that’s driving you crazy you can let us know by clicking on this link.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Officials are working together to bring the ditches and drainage service in an area of Goose Creek up to par after major flooding from summer storms.

BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) - State, county and city leaders say they are working together to bring the ditches and drainage service in an area of Goose Creek up to par after major flooding from summer storms.

After a staff meeting Tuesday morning, officials say they will be working together during the next 60-90 days on drainage system improvements. Work includes retrenching the ditches to the correct depth to allow flow, as well as inspecting each pipe for breaks or blockages.

Families in the Boulder Bluff and Beverly Hills neighborhoods experience heavy rain and flooded yards and foundations over the summer.

One family even suffered a loss of income when a member fell and broke an ankle trying to clean out the drainage area himself.

One issue the people ran into while trying to voice the problem was knowing who to bring their concerns to.

Mayor Greg Habib of Goose Creek says the city is not directly in charge of that service, but he stepped in to get all the people involved around one table to talk about next steps.

“Yes, they feel like they’re getting the runaround. And it’s because of how we are structured in South Carolina in Berkeley County in the city of Goose Creek,” Habib says.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation manages the roads and easements, the county manages drains and stormwater and many of the addresses are in the city. Those agencies say they are collaborating on a solution.

After heavy rains over the summer and getting multiple calls each, the agencies began workshopping with each other. Habib says he invited everyone to an in-person meeting Tuesday morning in Goose Creek to help.

Berkeley County Councilman Tommy Newell, State Representative Brandon Cox and SCDOT planners all came out.

The department of transportation says they are retrenching all the ditches next to the roads they run. The ditches will be deeper and clearer for water to flow through. The county is going into its drains, and making sure there are no breaks or blocks in those pieces.

“The first thing we need to do is ensure that we get the system back to its proper condition right. Are the ditches the proper depth? Are the storm drains open? Are the pipes underneath the roads all open for flow up and down the system? And so we believe that I personally believe that’ll take care of a lot of the issue” Habib says.

Habib says Boulder Bluff and Beverly Hills are older neighborhoods where many people have lived for nearly 40 years in their homes. He knows that the severe flooding issues have been amplified in past years by the continuing changes to the area.

“It’s important to note that in 60 years ago, when neighborhoods were built there were no stormwater, requirements, stormwater laws, stormwater engineering, there wasn’t any of that. You see a neighborhood get built today, they’re all required essentially to keep their stormwater on their own on the development right. That’s why there are retention ponds and detention drains and all of those things. Well that didn’t happen 60 years ago,” Habib says.

Given the older style of the system and the potential for deterioration, the agencies are doing a full assessment after this summer’s heavy rains. Their work in the next 60-90 days is meant to bring the system up to its max performance ability. Habib hopes that’s the solution to all the problems.

“It may be. I suspect it probably is, but it may not be. And if it’s not, we will then identify what we can do to raise the system up so that it does meet the standard that needs to be there today,” Habib.

Habib says anyone who is having specific problems is always welcome to bring their concerns to the city and county council to explain their issue and get help from the right agency.

“Water doesn’t know the boundaries of a municipality. So the stormwater money from within the city of Goose Creek goes to Berkeley County. Because I believe and so does the county believe that stormwater is much better managed from a macro county perspective than a micro-neighborhood,” Habib says.

Residents in the neighborhood say they are hopeful the work mitigates their issues and look forward to the completion of the retrenching and pipe clearing. Then they will await the next rain, and see if more work is needed, or if their system is doing enough.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

Homeowners in a Goose Creek neighborhood are looking for a solution to the flooding that affects their properties every time it rains.

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCSC) - Homeowners in a Goose Creek neighborhood are looking for a solution to the flooding that affects their properties every time it rains.

Kristen Gilliam has lived in the Boulder Bluff Neighborhood in Goose Creek for about 15 years. She has a home around the corner from her parents and they both see their properties fill up with sitting water each time it rains. It’s not just the yards threateningly close to their homes; she says it’s also the streets.

“It doesn’t even have to be heavy rain. It does get very bad in some areas, especially down one of the roads here. Water Oak Drive and Lucy Drive itself. They do tend to flood to where people have to literally turn around and take another route. The neighborhood tends to shut down,” Gilliam says.

She says the flooding is affecting some of the homes, and she knows people who are moving out and say the water is a big reason why.

“Like on this road alone, we actually have a bunch of vacant homes right now because they’ve left. A lot of people have had damages happen in the past year. Like my next next-door neighbor, they’re gone. A couple of other owners have just left their homes,” Gilliam says.

A road over in Boulder Bluff, Leslie Powell and her family have lived in their house for three years.

“The first time that we noticed the flooding was like, maybe a month after we moved in. We were in the house hanging out and then looked out the window and our whole yard was underwater. And we talked to our neighbors and they said the flooding hadn’t been that bad since Hugo and since then three years ago, it happens throughout the summer. It happens every couple of weeks or so,” Powell says.

She says their property is a little downhill and dips down from the road so their house is built up from the ground. But, they still have issues with water getting into their crawl space and water getting into their cars.

“We have to move the cars there’s been damage under our house and water has gotten into our cars before when we’ve been out of town. And so it’s been going on for at least three years now,” Powell says.

The women say the neighbors talk amongst themselves and some have individually tried calling the city and county to get answers. But so far, they haven’t been able to get in contact with the right person, and say they feel bounced around with no answers.

“There’s clearly a bigger issue that needs to be addressed and I don’t know what that is. So I don’t know the right questions to ask,” Powell says.

Gilliam acknowledges that making sure drains are clear from trash or tree trimmings is the responsibility of the neighbors.

“I know the neighborhood has a lot of debris and trash and it is our responsibility to also clean up the neighborhood. But I believe is the county or the city, whatever you live in I feel like it’s their responsibility to make sure that our trenches or ditches are actually trenched out and they’re not being built up with a bunch of debris,” Gilliam says.

The city of Goose Creek directed concerns for this area to the Berkeley County Stormwater Department. Berkeley County Stormwater Department says they are looking into the service history and plans for the neighborhood and will provide them when available.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCSC) - A Goose Creek couple’s condo has been without working air conditioning for weeks and they say they’re fed up.

The husband and wife claim they’ve been back and forth with their landlord to get it fixed, but the temperature continues to rise in their home at Greenslake Condominiums.

Thursday afternoon, Niambi Burton and Fred Mcleod’s condo was 84 degrees and they considered that cool, compared to what they had been dealing with.

Earlier in the week they said the condo was in the low 90′s, forcing them to pack their bags and head to a hotel for two nights.

Burton said she’s “beyond frustrated at this point.”

Last month the couple noticed their AC wasn’t working properly, and after keeping an eye on it for about two weeks, they notified their landlord that something was wrong.

“Her response was to shut the unit off, and she would let me know when she heard back from the guy,” Burton said. “Hours passed and the temperature was rising in the house.”

Weeks later, the couple said a repair man showed up and after a few hours claimed it was all fixed, but the problem only escalated from there.

“I noticed that the temperature just kept rising and rising and rising,” Burton said.

She explained that they were then told a part for the unit that was ordered wasn’t working and another part must be ordered, the couple then turned to purchasing fans and a portable unit to stay cool.

“Out of my own money and then still pay the full amount of rent,” Burton said.

So, what rights do you have if you find yourself in a similar situation? According to the South Carolina Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, a landlord shall maintain reasonably good and safe working order and condition of facilities and appliances, including air conditioning.

“Is the landlord reasonably and actually trying to make repairs and make that system operable? How long has it been down? What caused it to go down?,” real estate attorney Brent W. Suttles explained.

The act requires landlords to initiate repairs that they are responsible for that affect health and safety within 14 days of notice, according to Suttles.

“I think communication goes a long way in protecting both parties in a scenario, but it all falls back on the lease and the Landlord and Tenant Act,” Suttles said.

The Act requires landlords to initiate repairs that they are responsible for that affect health and safety within 14 days of notice, according to Suttles.

The couple’s landlord did not want to go on camera Thursday, but she said the part to fix the AC unit was ordered on Wednesday, sent photo proof of that order, and said she expects it will arrive soon.

If you’re in a situation where you think your landlord is not following the Landlord and Tenant Act, click here or here for more information.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.