Oct. 7—The majority of Aiken County has had power restored since Tropical Storm Helene tore through the area the morning of Sept. 27.
Fewer than 8,000 customers don't have electricity yet, but an influx of linemen from all over the country has arrived to assist Aiken Electric Co-Op and Dominion Energy crews.
Dominion reported 3,808 of its 62,038 Aiken County customers remained without power as of 11 a.m. Monday, Oct. 7.
The outage map indicates 4,000 of Aiken Electric's 36,861 members in Aiken County remain without power as of 11 a.m. Oct. 7.
Dominion's president Keller Kissam said over the weekend it now has one lineman in the area for every seven households.
"We've never had this many lineman in this confined an area in my 36 years," he said. "Of course, I've never seen an area busted in the chops like this one.
"This devastation is unbelievable. There's more here in the western part of South Carolina than I saw during Hugo. We had 88 transmission lines out. We didn't have this many transition lines down during Hugo in the whole state."
Aiken Electric Cooperative is also working to restore power for its members.
More than 84% of its 52,000 customers in Aiken, Barnwell, Edgefield, McCormick and Saluda counties have had power restored, said Daniele Ligons, Aiken Electric's manager of marketing and strategic services.
A "tent city" has emerged in Graniteville as Aiken Electric houses hundreds of linemen. Dominion has temporary shelters set up around the area, too.
Dominion Energy is estimating that 85% of its customers in Aiken County now have power restored and that number will improve to 95% by Wednesday, Oct. 9, at 11 p.m.
More deaths
The deaths of three more Aiken County residents have been attributed to Helene, according to Aiken County Coroner Darryl Ables.
Paul Linn, 86, of Aiken died Oct. 2 of respiratory distress. Wayne Dawes, 81, of New Ellenton and Douglas Buck, 80, of Aiken died from cardiac issues.
That brings the death toll in Aiken County to 10 from the storm.
Hunting area closed
Crackerneck Wildlife Management Area and Ecological Reserve is closed until further notice due to damage suffered from Hurricane Helene. No hunting or other public recreation will be allowed on Crackerneck during its closure.
Crackerneck Wildlife Management Area and Ecological Reserve consists of 10,600 acres owned by the U. S Department of Energy and managed for them by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources. The area is open only during designated dates and times and public access is tightly controlled. The area offers diverse recreational opportunities for hunting, fishing and other recreational uses.
For more information about Crackerneck, visit Crackerneck WMA and Ecological Reserve — SCDNR Public Lands (arcgis.com).
Insurance help
The South Carolina Department of Insurance is offering consumers assistance and remote claims services along with insurance carriers on Monday, Oct. 7, and Tuesday, Oct. 8, in Aiken.
It will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. both days at the Aldi's Parking Lot, 2510 Whiskey Road.
Representatives from State Farm, USAA, Allstate, South Carolina Farm Bureau, Auto-Owners, Travelers, Progressive, Nationwide and Heritage Insurance Companies will be in attendance along with members of the S.C. DOI's Office of Consumer Services to help consumers file claims and answer insurance-related questions.
The SC DOI's Insurance Fraud Division will share information to help consumers prevent being scammed by bad actors who often show up after a disaster.
Consumers are encouraged to contact the South Carolina Department of Insurance's Office of Consumer Services at 803-737-6180 or visit doi.sc.gov for more information and for helpful tips on navigating the claims process.
Flood insurance policyholders should contact their agent or the NFIP directly to report flood claims at 1-800-427-4219 or visit www.floodsmart.gov for additional information on the NFIP claim process. Suspected insurance fraud should be reported to 1-888-95-FRAUD.
FEMA support
As recovery efforts continue in South Carolina, FEMA has approved over $57 million for more than 73,500 households. FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance Teams are on the ground in neighborhoods across the affected counties continuing to help survivors apply for FEMA assistance and connect them with additional state, local, federal and voluntary agency resources.
Residents with questions on Helene can call the state's toll-free hotline, open 24 hours a day, at 1-866-246-0133.
Residents who are dependent on medical equipment at home and who are without power due to Helene may be eligible for a medical needs shelter. Call the state's Department of Public Health Care Line at 1-855-472-3432 for more information.
Staff writer Carl Dawson contributed to this article.
