Cheraw, SC (WLTX) -- The Chesterfield County town of Cheraw recorded over 22 inches of rain from Hurricane Florence, causing some major problems.
That is, until local helpers stepped in.
As the rains hit Sunday in Chesterfield County, the local creeks started to swell.
"That's just one of those things that we never dreamed would happen," said Kenny Grantham, Director of Infrastructure for the Town of Cheraw.
The flooding washed out the town's raw water line that goes straight to the Pee Dee River.
"The line was gone, the culvert that it sits on was gone," said Grantham.
City of Columbia Councilman At-Large, Howard Duvall, keeps a close eye on Cheraw. He was born there and served as the town's mayor in the 80's.
When Duvall saw the flooding in his hometown on social media, he took action.
"I think it was maybe [Councilman Duvall] that called us and said, 'Look, I know Columbia has some pumps. Do you need them?' We instantly said, 'Yeah! C'mon! We could use them'," said Grantham.
By Tuesday night, extra valves and water pumps were in the upstate. Duvall says, speaking from experience with Columbia's 2015 flood, this will be a long and tedious process for Cheraw.
"We've sent valves to allow them to pump out of an emergency reservoir that they have," said Duvall. "We have sent pumps to allow them to pump out of the Pee Dee River to that emergency reservoir."
Columbia has a canal that supplies 60 million gallons of water a day. The canal still has a temporary dam in it to make it deep enough for us to get water for the City of Columbia, said Duvall. We are still in negotiations with FEMA to fix the water problem there. As the city waits, they have five extra water pumps in storage for emergencies. We supplied Cheraw with two.
Grantham says before the river surpassed the water line, Cheraw crews were able to dig up the pipe, put the valve on the line and cap it to pump from the backup supply.
"We've got another crew coming in that's gonna help us hook up all the piping," said Grantham. "Columbia also furnished 1,600 feet of 12-inch HDPE pipe to use."
Residents of Cheraw now have drinking water in their homes again. As of Thursday, industrial customers also have water back.
"The industrial base in Cheraw is critical in Chesterfield County," said Duvall. "It produces a lot of jobs. When they have to be out for a week, those are a week's worth of wages for a lot of people who don't need to be losing those wages."
This story is just another example of South Carolina's sense of service and duty for a neighbor in need.
"It's good to know we've got people who have our back," said Grantham. "I feel certain, if the time comes and we're needed, we're gonna go."
This isn't the first time the City of Columbia helped other communities during a natural disaster. In 1989 during Hurricane Hugo, that was the first major effort of the Municipal Association to coordinate responses from the cities in South Carolina to the coastal areas. The City of Columbia played a vital role in that process. The Municipal Association was in action before the state created their Emergency Management division.
"I think a part of this story is the natural inclination of people in South Carolina to help each other," said Duvall. "When things are bad, we work together."