Downed trees, damaged roofs, smashed cars: Rock Hill deals with fallout from hail storm

Rock Hill residents are still dealing with downed trees, damaged roofs and smashed cars days after a storm pummeled the city’s southern end with golf-ball sized hail and winds up to 90 miles per hour.

A preliminary assessment of the damage from Saturday’s storm showed five homes destroyed, 17 houses with major damage, and hundreds more buildings with some damage, according to a statement Wednesday from York County government. The damage to buildings and vehicles will reach into the millions of dollars, said Chuck Haynes, York County Emergency Management director.

“We know it will be millions of dollars, but right now we don’t know yet how many millions,” Haynes said Wednesday.

In neighborhoods around Saluda Road and Heckle Boulevard Wednesday, volunteer groups helped some people with debris while utility crews worked to get the last homes without power for days back onto the grid.

As of Thursday morning around 9 a.m., around 20 Rock Hill utilities customers were still without service, the city’s outage map showed. City crews, York County Electric Cooperative and others from as far away as Easley and Union in South Carolina, could be seen putting up new poles, transformers and lines to get the power on.

Thousands of people initially lost power after the storm. At a news conference Monday in Rock Hill after the storm, NWS meteorologist Steve Wilkinson said the storm was one of the most damaging in memory.

Hail storms of the magnitude that hit Rock Hill are rare for the Southeast and generally seen in the Plains states, Wilkinson said.

Whitney Long and his wife Elizabeth Long sat on their porch at the intersection of Post Lane and Schulyer Avenue Wednesday afternoon waiting on crews to restore electricity to their house, and they were in good company. The couple’s pet potbelly pig Whitbur sat nearby eating cherry tomatoes.

The couple recalled Saturday’s freak hail storm, a macroburst of rain, hail and high winds, and how it devastated some parts of the city while leaving large swaths untouched. The Longs had just returned home from a pool tournament when the hail started. Then a tree fell. The hail began to pick up in size.

“It came down so hard and so fast, it covered the grass,” Whitney Long said. “And then we started seeing the trees falling.”

Elizabeth Long said she could see leaves swirling in the air.

The couple has used a gas grill to cook and a generator to power the refrigerator and to charge their phones.

“It’s like a long camping trip,” Whitney Long said.

Tree branch through the roof

A few houses down Schuyler Avenue, Johanna McClure showed damage that included five cars and downed trees. A branch speared a hole into her ceiling. The utility poles behind her home? Demolished.

“The power pole right behind us split in half,” McClure said.

On Schuyler Avenue nearby, Jeremy Sloan continued to clear debris from several trees that fell around his property and even onto his neighbor’s lot. Somehow, none of the large trees fell directly on the home.

“It could have been a lot worse,” Sloan said. “Some of my neighbors had trees fall on their houses.”

Sloan said after the storm neighbors checked on each other then got to work pulling trees from the road.

“People started helping each other almost as soon as the storm had passed,” Sloan said.

Volunteers around the area

That spirit of cooperation continued through Wednesday.

Down Schuyler Avenue, a group of people in gold shirts used a chain saw to cut a tree that fell in a yard.

Chris Johnston with the York Baptist Association and a crew of six were in Rock Hill to cut downed trees and move the debris to the road. The association helps with disaster relief as part of the South Carolina Baptist Association Disaster Relief organization.

Johnston said Baptist association volunteers from Florence, Charleston and other parts of South Carolina traveled to Rock Hill and will be here for several days to cut trees and haul debris.

“We make teams to go around to houses like this and help with people who can’t afford to have their trees removed or cut up in their yards,” Johnston said. “We do this all of the time and we love doing it.”

Since Saturday, Johnston said the organization has had about 50 to 60 volunteers help with the cleanup. The organization plans to have cleanup crews through Saturday. Johnston said volunteers “get to do God’s work.”

“It’s a Baptist thing, but it doesn’t matter who you are,” he added. “It feels good.”

The York Baptist Association is a group of dozens of area churches. Mike Wallace, director of missions for the county baptist association, said crews helped at more than 30 homes.

Volunteers and other groups who saw the devastation in news reports and on social media didn’t just bring chainsaws and tree limb cutters. They also brought food and water.

And love.

“It takes everybody pitching in to help others get through this,” said Ken Gillikin, a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity who cleared a stranger’s Lige Street yard Wednesday along with volunteers Pierre Chalaron and Gerry Myers.

Gillikin is a pastor at Epiphany Lutheran Church, located miles away.

“This side of town got hit hard,” Gillikin said of the city’s southern edge. “That’s all the more reason to help.”

Other ways people are helping

Tim Veeck, chief executive officer for York County Habitat for Humanity, said Wednesday staff and volunteers will continue to go through neighborhoods to talk to families about needs over the coming days and weeks. The organization hopes to serve as many people as possible, Veeck said.

To volunteer through Habitat for Humanity or reach out for assistance, Veeck said people can visit the agency’s website at yorkcountyhabitat.org or social media pages.

At a dinner giveaway Tuesday evening on Crawford Road, volunteers donated, cooked and served food, according to the Rock Hill Community Fridge Facebook page. Pictures from the event online showed Rock Hill Mayor John Gettys serving food alongside Carolina Panthers player Jadeveon Clowney, who grew up in Rock Hill. They were just two of the dozens of people in the photos from sororities and fraternities and other groups, including Rock Hill city council members Perry Sutton and Derrick Lindsey, who have donated time and hearts to help others, according to the city and social media postings since the storm hit.

Oakdale Baptist Church, located nearby in southern Rock Hill, posted on its church Facebook page that Samaritan’s Purse charity response team will be stationed there for at least a week to help people affected by the storm.

For volunteer opportunities visit the Oakdale Baptist Church or Samaritan’s Purse websites and social media pages, or call 803-992-1405. To speak with Samaritan’s Purse to receive assistance, call 833-747-1234.

More ways to get help

York County Emergency Management said in a statement it’s helping coordinate volunteer groups. People who need clean up for debris removal, cutting fallen limbs or trees or tarps to cover roof damage can call 803-250-3679.

For other questions or storm related needs, call the county emergency management office at 803-326-2300.

York County emergency officials also urged the public to use care when talking to people soliciting repair business.

“We encourage all property owners to work with reputable businesses who are licensed and insured in South Carolina. Look at customer reviews, check BBB ratings, compare estimates from multiple companies, and ask for estimates in writing,” county officials said in a statement Wednesday.