South-Carolina
Water levels plunge as lake warning issued in South Carolina
Lake Marion’s water levels have plunged by more than four feet over the past few days as Santee Cooper, South Carolina’s water and power utility, rushes to make room for floodwaters from North Carolina.
Helene made landfall last Thursday as a Category 4 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of around 140 miles per hour near Perry, Florida, in the state’s Big Bend region.
The storm brought fatalities across several southern and southeastern states, with storm surges, devastating winds, and torrential rain that threatened several dams and flooded Asheville, North Carolina.
More than 100 people were killed by the storm, the Associated Press reported. Days later, damage and devastation remain, and North Carolina floodwaters are coming to South Carolina.
On Monday evening, Santee Cooper warned Lake Marion boaters that the lake’s waters may exhibit sudden changes over the next few days.
“Boaters beware: We’re drawing down the lakes to make room for a wall of water coming from NC,” the utility posted on X, formerly Twitter. “Lake water will fall and rise in the next few days. If you must be in a boat, use extreme caution, avoid the Spillway, and watch for rapid water currents.”
A press release from the utility said that “near-historic water flows” were expected to make their way downstream from the North Carolina flooding, amounting to inflows of 2 million gallons per second into Lake Marion. To make room for the water, the utility began lowering the lake’s volume by spilling water from the dam last week.
On September 27, Lake Marion’s water levels were nearly 75 feet. By Tuesday morning, they had dropped to just over 70 feet, a steep plunge compared to average water levels over the past few years. Water levels have mostly ranged from 73 to 76 feet during that time.
Holcy/Getty
The press release assured South Carolina residents that the utility’s dams are secure and not at risk of failure. Last week, Hurricane Helene’s torrential rainfall stressed several dams in North Carolina and Tennessee to the point of imminent failure.
Officials plan to spill water from Lake Marion at a rate of nearly 1 million gallons per second beginning on Tuesday to continue allowing room for the excess water.
Newsweek reached out to Santee Cooper via email for comment.
Although the dam is secure, Santee Cooper warned that flooding may occur in the Santee River floodplain by Thursday or Friday.
“This is a significant spill, and flooding should be expected in the same areas in Georgetown County as experienced in 2015 and 2020, when the utility also conducted major spills,” the press release said. “Flooding will be more significant in areas closer to U.S. Highway 17. The Santee Cooper team is working with local and state authorities to manage any related issues.”
Spilling will continue until further notice.
Grambling transfer linebacker Andrew Jones emerged as one of South Carolina’s top targets from the moment he entered the portal — today the Gamecocks got their guy.
Jones — the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Co-Defensive Player of the Year — has committed to South Carolina out of the portal and will step into a major role in the Gamecocks’ defense in 2025.
Jones, ranked the No. 9 linebacker in the portal, reported offers from Ole Miss, Oklahoma State, USF, and Georgia State, while he heard from over 20 schools.
South Carolina Transfer Portal Resources:
The 6-foot-2, 220-pounder tallied 122.0 total tackles (57 solo), 20.5 tackles of loss, 3.0 sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one defensive touchdown this season.
Jones will be expected to bring that productivity to a linebacker room that loses its top three contributors, Debo Williams, Demetrius Knight Jr., and Bam Martin-Scott, from this year’s squad.
Jones, who has one year of eligibility left, previously spent time at Memphis.
The Marrero, La. native is South Carolina’s fifth transfer portal pledge, joining OL Nick Sharpe (Wake Forest), EDGE Jaylen Brown (Missouri), TE Jordan Dingle (Kentucky), and DL Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy (Texas A&M).
South Carolina football needed immediate help at linebacker, and has made its first move in the transfer portal to find some.
The Gamecocks landed their third transfer portal target of the day and fifth overall when former Grambling State linebacker Andrew Jones committed to South Carolina late Wednesday night. He is the third defensive player in the class, and the first linebacker to help replace a room set to lose Debo Williams, Demetrius Knight Jr. and Bam Martin-Scott following the 2024 season.
Jones was co-defensive player in the SWAC in 2024. The redshirt junior registered 122 tackles, 20.5 tackles for loss and three sacks last season, by far the best season of his career. He started playing college football at Memphis in 2021, where he maintained his redshirt with four appearances before playing in five games in 2022.
He will be a redshirt senior next season, meaning the 2025 season will be his final year of eligibility.
************************************************************************
Looking to continue the conversation? Join us on the insider’s forum to talk all things South Carolina football.
South Carolina’sKyle Kennard, who won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the top defensive player in college football, has decided to opt out of theGamecocks’ Cheez-It Citrus Bowl matchup withIllinois, coach Shane Beamer said Wednesday.
Kennard, a 6-foot-5, 254-pound edge rusher, led the SEC in tackles for loss (15.5) and sacks (11.5) and also forced three fumbles. This was his only season at South Carolina after transferring from Georgia Tech.
Beamer said Kennard was skipping the bowl game to prepare for the 2025 NFL draft. ESPN’s Mel Kiper has Kennard rated as the No. 6 outside linebacker in the draft, and ESPN’s Field Yates projects Kennard to be the No. 26 overall selection by the Green Bay Packers.
Kennard was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year by both the coaches and AP and was an integral part of a South Carolina defensive line that was widely considered one of the best in the country. Kennard and freshman Dylan Stewart combined for 18 sacks, and the Gamecocks tied for third nationally with 30 sacks.
South Carolina (9-3) is trying to win 10 or more games for only the fifth time in school history when it takes on Illinois on Dec. 31 in Orlando.
Copyright © 2024 ESPN Internet Ventures. All rights reserved.
Horny Deer At Risk Of Getting Tangled In Christmas Lights, Colorado Officials Warn
Firefighter Dies After Being Struck By Vehicle, ID Released: CT News
Delaware prisons expand program to give tablets to all behind bars
South Florida’s beachfront buildings found to be sinking faster than expected
Georgia Power customers facing higher bills next year
Colorado Rockies game no. 116 thread: Zac Gallen vs José Ureña
Why Marjorie Taylor Greene was ‘kicked out’ of the Freedom Caucus according to Rep. Buck
See it: Tesla crashes into Columbus convention center at 70 mph
Fox News Politics: Georgia the whole day through
Death of missing Oregon girl found in stream ruled homicide
Massie comes out against Johnson retaining speaker's gavel: 'He does not have my vote'
Can toppled Syrian president Bashar al-Assad be brought to justice?
Wisconsin school shooting victims named as teacher Erin West and student Rubi Vergara
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to what happened to the interim spending bill
Arson at karaoke bar in Vietnam’s Hanoi kills 11, police say
-
Business1 week agoOpenAI's controversial Sora is finally launching today. Will it truly disrupt Hollywood?
-
Politics6 days agoCanadian premier threatens to cut off energy imports to US if Trump imposes tariff on country
-
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25782636/247422_ChatGPT_anniversary_CVirginia.jpg "Inside the launch — and future — of ChatGPT")
Technology1 week agoInside the launch — and future — of ChatGPT
-
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25789444/1258459915.jpg "OpenAI cofounder Ilya Sutskever says the way AI is built is about to change")
Technology5 days agoOpenAI cofounder Ilya Sutskever says the way AI is built is about to change
-
Politics5 days agoU.S. Supreme Court will decide if oil industry may sue to block California's zero-emissions goal
-
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25546252/STK169_Mark_Zuckerburg_CVIRGINIA_D.jpg "Meta asks the US government to block OpenAI’s switch to a for-profit")
Technology6 days agoMeta asks the US government to block OpenAI’s switch to a for-profit
-
Politics7 days agoConservative group debuts major ad buy in key senators' states as 'soft appeal' for Hegseth, Gabbard, Patel
-
Business4 days agoFreddie Freeman's World Series walk-off grand slam baseball sells at auction for $1.56 million