At noon today Mike Gorski, of Island Transportation Services, reported that Main Rd is backed up over the bridge to almost River Rd. He recommends for anyone going to the airport to go through James Island and give themselves at least an extra half hour.
-Submitted by Tidelines Editor
Two Seabrookers have written in to say that they were diverted from Bohicket Road through Edenvale Rd to River Road. They couldn’t tell what was causing the problem.
Needless to say, the traffic on River Road as well as Maybank Rd is heavy. As people working on the island try to leave this afternoon, it might be even heavier.
There is nothing on the DOT website, but we will monitor this.
UPDATE: Commenters are indicating the road is now reopened.
Submitted by Tidelines Staff
Several Seabrookers have reported that Bohicket Road at River Road is now open all the way to Route 17. Apparently, they were able to repair the road faster than they anticipated.
We will keep you updated if we hear anything to the contrary.
Submitted by Tidelines Staff
Considering the extent of damage in other parts of the region and the State, to our knowledge Seabrook’s damages were fortunately limited and recovery was relatively rapid. All streets were either dry or passable by Tuesday as the remaining standing water dissipated. Street cleaning equipment was put into action to brush off any debris that remained and blow out clogged storm drains. Dry, sunny days facilitated these actions, and the Fleming Tennis Tournament was held this weekend as scheduled.
In a limited number of yards and golf course fringes, shallow standing water still remains due to supersaturated ground. The Seabrook Island Club resumed normal operations on Wednesday.
The most noticeable transportation irritant remaining is off-Island; namely, the closure of Bohicket Road between Edenvale and River Road, which at this writing, is expected to reopen this week on the 16th. Main Road at Savannah Highway has re-opened, but we urge readers to monitor this situation for changes that can occur in a brief period of time. There is still a persistent problem with standing water on the opposite side of the River Road where Plowground intersects it. The dirt road going to residences was flooded out and workers were bringing in fill to raise its grade all last week. It is passable but traffic slows down to get through it.
Our experience has been that traffic flow is relatively normal, all things considered, except for congestion at pinch-point intersections like Maybank Highway and River Road, and Main and Route 17 Savannah Highway–both during rush periods (which occurs during good weather as well). A Tidelines staffer made it over to Mt. Pleasant and back on Thursday, leaving mid-morning and returning mid-afternoon, with no problems encountered and free flow on all roads.
We’ll have more on the recovery and cleanup this week.
—Tidelines Staff
According to Live 5 News, Main Road is reopening to traffic in both directions as of noon today, Thursday 10/8. Follow the link below for the latest, as Live 5 is updating this article as information changes.
-Submitted by Shawna Jarrett
The closure of Bohicket Road near its intersection with River Road, coupled with continuing closures at Main Road and Route 17, continues to cause difficulty in circulating and moving on and off Johns Island. Bohicket Road is closed until October 16th due to risk of pavement failure, and flooding at Main and Rte 17 is allowing the road to be opened to traffic only periodically during periods of low tide.
This means that, during substantial parts of the day, the only way on and off Johns Island is over the Stono Bridge. The intersection of Maybank and River Road–already a bottleneck during good weather–has only worsened during this period. We received a report that this morning, traffic bound for the Stono Bridge on Maybank was backed up nearly to Bohicket & Main.
This bottleneck also makes traffic on River Road at Maybank back up. There is still some minor standing water on River Road at the intersection with Plowground. If business takes you closer to Main/Bohicket and not off the Island, a viable alternative is to take River Road to Edenvale Road, and then cut back over to Bohicket. This allows a driver to bypass the Maybank/River Road intersection.
Today, authorities opened Main at Route 17 for a few hours this afternoon to allow traffic to turn onto Main from the highway and cross the Waterway onto Johns Island. This occurred at low tide. The same may happen tomorrow, but the flow may be reversed. Readers are encouraged to monitor news sources for particulars.
On the Island, the intersection of Seabrook Island Road at Little Creek/Baywood continues to experience standing water at high tide. The road is passable under these conditions.
—Tidelines Staff
Standing water in some of the roads decreased earlier in the day but, as of 2:30 p.m. the rain and high tide has caused water levels to rise again on Seabrook Island Rd by the Lake House and Gate and most likely in other areas. The following travel advisory from the Fire Dept. is still in effect:
AVOID DRIVING. IF YOU MUST DRIVE, DO NOT ENTER WATER OF UNKNOWN DEPTH.
Submitted by Tidelines Staff
St. Johns Fire Chief Colleen Walz has emphasized the need for people to stay in their homes. Calls have been received from people who get stranded with vehicles stalled in deep water. Understand that SJFD must allocate its resources according to its assessment of received calls. As we are being spared from the worst flooding, we are responsible for avoiding unnecessary risks that could add to the extraordinary demands on first responders. AVOID DRIVING. IF YOU MUST DRIVE, DO NOT ENTER WATER OF UNKNOWN DEPTH.
Submitted by John Gregg
Dennis Pescitelli wrote in that as of approximately 5 PM:
Seabrook Island Road is closed between Baywood and the Lake House; it is open at the loop intersection with itself.
Royal Pine is closed at both Old Forest and Old Oak Walk. Old Oak Walk is open at Royal Pine.
There are still sections of standing water on Cap’n Sams.
The Haulover and High Hammock are clear.
This report reflects an ebbing tide and a break in the rain. Conditions could worsen again depending on either factor.
Again, this is not an official report, but one we feel you should be updated on.
Submitted by Tidelines Editors
Ty Headley reported at 5:30 pm that you can use the north loop of Seabrook Island Road to exit the island with no problem. The road to Freshfields is now manageable, some standing water around Bohicket entrance but not a hazard.
Tidelines has not received official confirmation of this, but we want to let you know what other Seabrookers are observing.
Submitted by Tidelines Editors
Al Ivester returned from Freshfields to Seabrook Island at 2 pm. He reports that there was about two feet of water on the road near the entrance to Bohicket but the road is passable in a SUV or truck.
He also has informed us about a tree down approximately five miles north of Seabrook. It has blocked the road since 11:30 this morning. He was able to detour around to Maybank via River Rd.
Tidelines has not received official notification of this, but is posting it for your information.
Submitted by Tidelines Editor